Heatwave – 42.1 ° new temperature record for Hartbeespoort: Is ...
Hartbeespoort is in the grip of an intense heatwave, with temperature records broken in several places in South Africa last week.
According to a social media post by Vox Weather, the heatwave continues this week in parts of the North West, Limpopo, the Free State, the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, KZN and Mpumalanga.
Last week, temperature records were broken in several places in the northern parts of the country.
Have a look at which records were broken:Image: Vox Weather/Facebook
Image: Vox Weather/Facebook
According to Vox Weather, heatwave conditions are expected to last until Friday in the North West, Free State, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, KZN and Limpopo.
What is causing the heatwave?Vox Weather says a dominating high-pressure system in the upper atmosphere north of the country is causing extreme heat and dry conditions.
“As it shifted southwest, it extended scorching conditions to the Northern Cape. This forces air to sink, compress and heat up, creating scorching temperatures and suppressing cloud formation.”
Some relief is expected in the form of thundershowers, which are possible throughout the week in Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and KZN.
Is 2024 the hottest year yet?The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) says this year is on track to be the warmest year on record after an extended streak of exceptionally high temperatures across the world.
Adding to that, 2015-2024 will be the warmest 10 years on record.
“The loss of ice from glaciers, sea-level rise and ocean heating are accelerating and extreme weather is wreaking havoc on communities and economies across the world,” the WMO said in a press release last month.
According to the WMO, the surface air temperature from January to September 2024 was 1.54°C above the pre-industrial average, boosted by a warming El Niño event.
Celeste Saulo, WMO secretary-general, says every fraction of a degree of warming matters.
“Whether it is at a level below or above 1.5°C of warming, every additional increment of global warming increases climate extremes, impacts and risks.
“The record-breaking rainfall and flooding, rapidly intensifying tropical cyclones, deadly heat, relentless drought and raging wildfires that we have seen in different parts of the world this year are unfortunately our new reality and a foretaste of our future,” says Saulo.
Original article writen by Andrea van Wyk and published on Caxton Network News
