Canada has been reeling under a severe heatwave which has caused a 195 percent rise in sudden fatalities within the past five years. Last week In Lytton in British Colombia, temperatures soared to over 46 degrees Celsius.
In the Portland city in Oregan, United States, temperatures as high as 46 degrees Celsius were recently registered. In Salem which is barely 72 km away from Portland, the temperatures were highest at about 47 degrees Celsius on June 28, 2021.
These soaring temperatures being reported from the Pacific northwest and some parts of Canada are part of a historic heatwave that has lasted over a week and is a result of a phenomenon known as ‘Heat Dome’. But how is it causing the rise in temperatures?
What is a Heat Dome? |
As per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) of the US Department of Commerce, a heat dome occurs when the atmosphere traps hot ocean air like a lid or a cap.
The phenomenon of Heat dome starts when there is a strong change (or gradient) in the ocean temperatures. In the process called convection, the gradient causes more warm air, heated by the ocean surface, to rise over the ocean surface.
The NOAA further added that as the prevailing winds move the hot air east, the northern shifts of the jet stream trap the air and move it toward the land, where it sinks and results in heatwaves.
How long will the heatwave last?
Many weather scientists and the research organisations such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric studied these climatic changes and have arrived at the conclusion that a heat dome typically lasts a week.
According to scientists and researchers, the formation becomes too big to keep standing and falls over, releasing the trapped air and ending the swelter.
What are the effects of heat dome?
The people living without an air conditioner see the temperatures of the homes rising unbearably high which leads to sudden fatalities like those being reported in parts of the United States and Canada.
According to the weather experts, the trappings of the heat can also damage crops, dry out vegetation and result in droughts.
The heatwave also leads to the rise in energy demands, particularly the electricity, leading to pushing up the rates.
The heat domes act as fuels to the wildfires, which is responsible for destroying a lot of land area in the United States every year.
Heat waves in Canada and US: Is it dangerous for humans?According to Randall Munroe, if a person is at rest, is wearing minimal clothing in a very dry room with about 10% relative humidity, and has been constantly drinking water, so that sweat can be produced, they can avoid overheating at temperatures at high as 46 degree Celsius. As long as the body is producing sweat, it will remain cool even under high temperatures. However, there is a limit to this which is called the wet-bulb temperature- that considers the humidity and heat beyond which humans cannot tolerate high temperatures. Some of the heat-related illnesses include heat exhaustion, heat stroke, heat rashes, and sunburn which can also prove to be fatal. |
Are heat domes result of climate change?
Weather scientists all over the world have been highlighting the effects of rising temperatures (climate change) on the more extreme heatwaves.
According to the NOAA Survey in 2017, the average US temperatures have increased since the last 19th century.
Scientists who have been studying the climate tend to agree that the heat waves occurring today are more likely the result of climate change for which humans are responsible.
The climate scientists, in the decades to come, expect more days of a severe heatwave. Apart from the United States, the cities as far north as the Arctic circle broke heat records this week.
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