26 additional days of extreme heat recorded on average over the last twelve months

In total, 76 extreme heat waves were recorded in 90 different countries, on every continent except Antarctica, according to a report from the climate center of the International Red Cross.

Almost a month out of a year. On average, 26 additional days of extreme heat have been recorded across the world over the past twelve months due to global warming, according to a report from the climate center of the International Red Cross (IFRC) released on Tuesday May 28. In total, 76 extreme heat waves were recorded in 90 different countries, on every continent except Antarctica, scientists estimate.

To determine the number of heatwave days “surplus” because of humanity’s greenhouse gas emissions, the report, established with the scientific network World Weather Attribution (WWA) and the NGO Climate Central, recorded, between May 15, 2023 and May 15, 2024, days where regions experienced temperatures higher than 90% of those recorded over the period 1991-2020. The scientists then analyzed, using a method validated by their peers, the influence of climate change on each of these excessively hot days.

They concluded that on average worldwide, 26 of these days recorded extreme temperature, made twice as likely by the effect of global warming, allowing them to classify them as a heat day “surplus”. “Floods and hurricanes may make the headlines, but the effects of extreme heat are just as deadly”judge in a press release Jagan Chapagain, secretary general of the IFRC. “It is known that tens of thousands of people have died from extreme heat over the past 12 months, but the true toll is probably in the hundreds of thousands or millions.”estimates the organization, because heatwaves “exacerbate previous health problems”.

Furthermore, the vast majority of the world’s population has suffered heatwaves. In total, 6.3 billion people, or around 78% of humanity, experienced at least 31 days of extreme heat over the past year. The five most affected countries are all located in Latin America: Suriname experienced 182 days of extreme heat compared to 24 estimated in the absence of climate change, Ecuador (180 days instead of 10), Guyana (174 compared to 33), El Salvador (163 against 15), and Panama (149 instead of 12).