![]() “The event itself appears to be an extremely rare combination of weather features that could have happened in the absence of human activity,” he said.”But the temperatures would not have been as hot if there wasn’t that influence from human activity.” He said the study did a great job of applying sophisticated statistical techniques and quantitative perspectives to find answers to the many questions climate scientists had about the heat wave. Paul Loikith, associate professor in the department of geography at Portland State University agrees. ![]() It’s highly unlikely this extreme weather event would happen again anytime soon, she said, but because of the small shifts in temperatures, it’s already made a difference in how hot heat waves can get. McKinnon called it “climate change plus bad luck” as it was also an unusual time of year for the region to experience extreme heat. They found the heat wave to be roughly a one-in-10,000-years event that was even warmer because of climate change. ![]() To determine just how rare the heatwave was, McKinnon co-authored a study that analyzed 50 climate model simulations and combined historical weather station data and trends from 1850 through 2100. McKinnon said early on, it was hard to put a number on the probability of this type of event happening in this region because it was so low. “Temperatures were still in many places on the order of 30 degrees higher than average for that time of year during the heatwave.” “The event was just so extreme even after accounting for climate change, which has added about a degree-and-a-half Celsius or three degrees Fahrenheit to Pacific Northwest temperatures since 1960,” she said. She wanted to know if climate models could predict such an extraordinary event and if the extreme heat is a sign of more heat waves in the future. That prompted Karen McKinnon, assistant professor of climate science at UCLA, to find answers. Hundreds of people died across the Northwest, and at least 96 people died in Oregon, most of whom were home alone and had no air-conditioning units.Ĭlimate scientists were puzzled by the high temperatures, and early studies suggested that the extreme heat wave was virtually impossible without climate change. The heat wave, known as a “heat dome” trapped hot air over the region from June 24-29. Portland saw a record high temperature of 116 degrees, while cities including Salem, Hillsboro and the Columbia River Gorge also broke their all-time records. ![]() Records were broken across the region in June of 2021, as temperatures soared as high as 118 degrees Fahrenheit. A new study finds the Pacific Northwest’s extreme heat wave last summer was a freak event that should only happen once in 10,000 years and it was even hotter because of climate change. ![]()
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