Heat beyond human body limits, affecting billions

Warnings have been issued for a long time about the need for global warming measures. However, meteorologists are drawing attention by warning that temperatures will exceed human limits in regions of billions of people this century.

Last June was the hottest month ever observed. In Paris, France, on July 25, the temperature reached a whopping 42.6 degrees, breaking the observation record after 72 years.

Tom Matthews, a meteorology lecturer at Loughborough University in the UK, pointed out the heat that the human body could endure from a meteorological perspective. The average human body temperature is around 36 degrees. Heat is always released from the body surface while the temperature is below this, but when the temperature reaches 35 degrees, the body almost disappears. In this case, the cooling system of the human body depends on the action of sweat, and the limit of cooling capacity by sweat is said to be 35 degrees wet bulb temperature.

Wet bulb temperature is the temperature measured until all the water wrapped in a cloth dampened with a thermometer has evaporated. This is the temperature standard used to calculate humidity compared to the dry bulb temperature, which represents the normal temperature. Matthews mentioned the wet bulb temperature because the human body regulates body temperature through sweat, so it is affected by humidity as well as temperature.

As of 2019, few regions have reached a wet bulb temperature of 35 degrees, but in parts of China, Southeast Asia, and regions near the Persian Gulf in the Middle East, this temperature is imminent. In areas where billions of people live during this century, wet bulb temperatures could reach 35 degrees Celsius.

Relying on an air conditioner is another method, but it causes the problem of consuming a lot of power. The energy demand from air conditioners is said to triple by 2050. If thermal power plants around the world produce energy, global warming will accelerate further. Assuming this, if the average temperature is 4 degrees higher than before global warming began, a hurricane that looks like a raid on Puerto Rico in 2017 occurs every year. Protecting your body from the heat is as important as securing clean water in the future. Related information can be found here .