Is the heat wave that’s currently hitting the Central Coast tied to climate change?
It’s too soon to know for sure, scientists say.
“We do know pretty reliably that the overall air temperature of the world goes up during an El Niño,” said Samantha Stevenson, a professor and climate modeler at UC Santa Barbara.
Stevenson said there’s also the general long-term trend towards warming temperatures.
“Probably once it's all said and done, we will be able to say that there was some contribution of both of those things to the intensity of this heat wave,” she said.
However, heatwaves are not uncommon during California summers.
“Regardless of your political background or the personal importance you attach to climate change, if you’re living in Southern California, we just need to be prepared for these types of extreme heat,” Stevenson told KCBX.
But temperature isn’t the only possible factor — warming temperatures also allow the atmosphere to hold onto more water vapor.
A representative with the National Weather Service told KCBX that high humidity is expected during this week’s heat wave as well.
“We're very confident that hot, humid conditions will grow more likely with climate change and have already grown more likely,” said Jane Baldwin, an assistant professor of Earth System Science at UC Irvine.
Baldwin says increased humidity disrupts your body’s ability to stay cool, which can increase the likelihood of heatstroke.
“On a personal note, I'm in my third trimester of pregnancy,” Baldwin told KCBX. “I normally am able to get away with not using my air conditioning in Southern California, but I definitely have been feeling the urge to turn it on recently.”
While your impulse might be to conserve energy by not using your AC, Baldwin says extreme heat events are not the time to try and be a hero. That’s especially the case for people at high-risk for heat stroke, like kids and the elderly.
“In many ways heat is a lot less dramatic than an event like a hurricane,” she said. “It's hard to take a picture of a heat wave in a way that's scary, but also people should take it seriously.”
However, there are many ways to help manage the heat.
Baldwin recommends visiting a cooling center, taking a cold shower and checking in on your neighbors to help them stay safe as well.
