Topical given the current heat wave in the western US that's breaking temperature records:
NYT article with some good visuals about temperature changes over the next 80 years
Right now, this is how much of the world sees temperatures over 95F (35C) over 5 days per year on average, colored by how many days (darkest = 200+ days a year):
There are two projections for how this map changes, one based on nations meeting Paris goals, the other ("doing nothing") based on emissions continuing to rise at the same rate as 2000-2010:
The latter one isn't likely to happen, given that coal use is declining, but we still have work to do to make it to the Paris map, which still isn't ideal. Extreme heat both increases our need for energy and decreases our ability to feed the world:
It also has harmful economic effects:
Quote:
The flip side is that air-conditioning can be an essential adaptation tactic. In countries without widespread cooling, heat deaths rise more sharply during the hottest days. One study estimated that heat deaths in India increase by 3.2 percent for every 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit above 68 (or every 1 degree Celsius above 20). Energy use in many countries may rise sharply as people struggle to adapt to a hotter climate.
Other scientists have found that corn and soybean yields in the United States plummet precipitously when temperatures rise above 84 degrees Fahrenheit (29 degrees Celsius), and that worker productivity declines sharply, particularly for outdoor jobs. And researchers are trying to understand how crime and conflict might rise as temperatures increase.