Heat stress 2 (IMAGE)
Caption
Frequency distribution of feels-like temperatures (UTCI) for each continent, and increase from the 1970s to the last 10 years (2015–2024). Frequency is defined as the total number of occurrences, calculated as the sum across all grid cells and days within two periods: the 1970s and the last 10 years (2015–2024). Thresholds for strong (32°C), very strong (38°C) and extreme (46°C) heat stress are highlighted, together with multiplication factors showing how much more often these thresholds were exceeded in 2015–2024 than in the 1970s. Dots indicate the statistical significance: P < 0.001 (•••), P < 0.01 (••), P < 0.05 (•). An open circle indicates P > 0.05. The shaded areas highlight the shift of the distributions towards more extreme values. Data: ERA5-HEAT. Source: Emerton et al., 2026: Global heat stress intensification and its expanding footprint on the human population, Nature Climate Change, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-026-02670-5
Credit
ECMWF
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License
CC BY