Climate - new temperature records

Breaking temperature records has become a habit, but not an auspicious one. From all over the world comes news of rising temperatures. The National Bureau of Meteorology in the Philippines has issued a warning regarding a heat index of up to 51 degrees Celsius in at least nine areas of this country, informs Xinhua. According to the mentioned office, nine areas in the Philippines are classified as being in "danger", indicating temperatures between 42 and 51 degrees Celsius. The rest of the Southeast Asian country is under an "extreme caution" warning, with temperatures ranging between 33 and 41 degrees Celsius. The heat index measures the temperature of the surrounding air felt by people when taking into account the relative humidity in a certain locality. Residents in areas experiencing a danger-level heat index are most likely to suffer from heat cramps and exhaustion. "Sunstroke is also possible in case of continuous exposure," the Philippine office warned. To avoid potential complications due to the extreme heat, the office advised the population to limit their outdoor activities and drink sufficient amounts of water. The Philippine government has allowed schools to hold classes online instead of face-to-face to protect students from this high heat index.

Even closer to us, the situation is not more "rosy". On Sunday, Austria faced the earliest "strong heat" ever recorded, and in a city in the south of the country the temperature reached the threshold of 30 degrees Celsius, the national meteorological service said, according to AFP. The meteorological station in Bruck an der Mur, in the region of Styria (southeast), recorded 30 degrees Celsius on Sunday. This record is 10 days ahead of the previous day when the earliest "severe heat" was recorded, recorded on April 17, 1934 in Salzburg. Temperatures in other European countries have also been unusually high since the start of April, such as temperatures of over 30 degrees Celsius in south-west France. Experts point out that extreme phenomena are becoming more frequent as a result of climate change.