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Pacific Northwest Faces Record Hot Weather

Western Canada and the northwestern United States have been facing record-breaking high temperatures for days. An unusual weather system has created a “heat dome” of trapped hot air in the area. The heat is expected to last for several more days.

On Sunday, the town of Lytton in British Columbia reached 116º Fahrenheit (F) (46.6º Celsius (C), setting the record for Canada’s highest temperature ever. Before that, the record was 113ºF (45ºC). But on Monday, Lytton set a brand new record, reaching 118.2ºF (47.9ºC).

Graphic of Western Washington showing National Weather Service's predicted high temperatures for the day of June 28, 2021.
Western Canada and the northwestern United States have been facing record-breaking high temperatures for days. Above, the US National Weather Service’s predicted high temperatures for Monday.
(Source: US National Weather Service [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.)

In the US, records were also being broken. Portland, Oregon reached 115ºF (46.1ºC) and Seattle hit 108ºF (42.2ºC). Those are the highest temperatures in those cities since the 1940s when they began keeping temperature records in the area.

On Tuesday, the weather system moved inland. This brought some relief to cities on the coast, but the blazing heat set new records in cities like Alberta, Canada and Spokane, Washington in the US.

Weather experts say that the cause of the heat wave is a high pressure system that is trapped in the area. Like a lid on a pan of boiling water, this “heat dome” is holding the hot air in over the area.

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In the US, records were also being broken. Portland, Oregon reached 115ºF (46.1ºC) and Seattle hit 108ºF (42.2ºC). Those are the highest official temperatures in those cities since the 1940s. Above, a thermometer in Portland, Oregon shows 116ºF.

The heat wave is not just about records. It’s causing serious health problems. Though some cities are offering cooling centers and misting stations to help people beat the heat, it’s not always enough.

Because of the heat dome, temperatures aren’t dropping much at night. Since the areas affected are usually much cooler, many people don’t have air-conditioning. The number of heat-related hospital visits and deaths in the affected areas has gone up sharply.

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The heat wave is not just about records. It’s causing serious health problems. Though some cities are offering cooling centers and misting stations to help people beat the heat, it’s not always enough. Above, a misting station in Vancouver, Canada.

In an effort to keep cool during the heat wave, many people are using much more electricity than normal. This heavy electricity use has caused blackouts in several areas in both Canada and the US.

The extreme temperatures are also affecting farmers. Some crops are getting ripe much earlier than expected, meaning farmers have to hurry to pick them before they go bad. Other crops are now likely to produce far less than expected because of the hot, dry weather. One Canadian farmer told CBC News that this year was “looking like the worst crop in history.”

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Temperatures aren’t dropping much at night. Since the areas affected are usually much cooler, many people don’t have air-conditioning. Heat-related hospital visits and deaths in the areas have gone up sharply. Above, a cooling center in Portland, Oregon.

It is always hard to quickly connect unusual weather like this heat wave directly with the larger pattern of climate change.  But it is certainly true that because of human-caused global warming, there are now more heat waves, they are more serious, and they last longer.

In the Pacific Northwest, where the heat wave is happening, temperatures have gone up by 3ºF (1.7ºC) in the last 50 years. Worldwide, the last seven years are the hottest years ever recorded.

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