Global Heating Is No Longer a Tomorrow Problem. It’s Today’s.
Monday was the hottest day in recorded history, and it’s only going to get worse. We’re not prepared for the public-health peril.
Millions of Americans who work outdoors lack relief from the heat.
Photographer: Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images
For decades, global warming was widely seen as a tomorrow problem, something for our hapless grandchildren to worry about. But with heat records tumbling relentlessly, it’s becoming clear that tomorrow has basically arrived. We are the hapless grandchildren. And it’s also becoming clear that we’re not ready for the heat.
Monday was the hottest day in recorded history, with the average global temperature hitting 17.15 degrees Celsius (62.87F), according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service. That smashed the previous record set way back on, uh, Sunday.