It’s hellishly hot outside, so hot that Miami-Dade County just received its first “excessive heat” advisory.
On July 17, like Miami turned 36 consecutive days With a heat index above 100 degrees, the National Weather Service (NWS) issued an “excessive heat” advisory, warning that heat indices in the county reach a scorching 110 to 112 degrees. Issued early Sunday morning and into the evening, it was the first time on record that such an advisory had been issued for Miami-Dade, the NWS says.
“I think this is a first… Wow,” University of Miami meteorologist Brian McNoldy tweeted.
Oppressive humidity has combined with parched temperatures to make the Miami air feel exceptionally sweltering, says a National Weather Service meteorologist. New Times.
“Usually, we’re lucky in South Florida because we have the ocean right next to us. We have a sea breeze, which usually every afternoon in the afternoon, moves away from the ocean toward the land and can help bring the temperature down.” said meteorologist Sammy Hadi. he says.
Hadi says that this year, our above-average sea surface temperatures have hampered the cooling effect of the sea breeze.
Add in a strong southwesterly flow that has kept a moist air mass around us, and you have a recipe for a wet July, according to Hadi.
There’s a caveat: On June 1, the NWS slightly lowered the threshold for excessive heat advisories and warnings in the area, allowing the service to issue an excessive heat warning when the heat index (what the temperature feels like when humidity is taken into account) is forecast to remain at 110 degrees or higher for at least two hours. (The previous threshold to activate the warning was a heat index of 113 degrees for more than two hours.)
Nonetheless, Miami had an unprecedentedly hot month.
According historical climatic data Posted by McNoldy, Miami has already set a dozen daily records in July for the highest heat index on record. We have also broken records for the highest temperature recorded in five calendar days in July.
An Excessive Heat Warning for Miami-Dade will go into effect later this morning as heat indices could reach 110°F-112°F for extended periods throughout the county.
Heat advisories also remain in effect for the rest of South Florida through tonight. pic.twitter.com/dWmWGa6J5D
— NWS Miami (@NWSMiami) July 16, 2023
It’s not just South Florida that’s feeling the heat.
Against the backdrop of global climate change, places around the world are experiencing some of the hottest days on record, including China, which is reportedly just recorded its highest temperature with 126 degrees – and the infamously hot Death Valley, California, which just set a new daily average record of 128 degrees.
On Sunday, according to McNoldy, Miami marked its 20th consecutive day with a heat index of more than 102 degrees.
scientists have warned For years the Miami heat will only get worse. In 2019, the Union of Concerned Scientists estimated that by mid-century, global warming would contribute to Miami experiencing a dramatically increased number of days per year with a heat index above 100 degrees.
In 2021, Miami-Dade named its first “Heat Director,” Jane Gilbert, to help the county deal with extreme heat.
So far in his tenure, Gilbert has helped the county lower the “heat advisory” and “heat advisory” thresholds and install high-efficiency air conditioning units in public housing. He is now working to increase tree canopy cover with an emphasis on low-income neighborhoods, according to Axios.
