Heat Wave
Have an extraordinary hot summer? How many more can we expect? Find out everything there is to know about heat waves and stay updated on the latest climate news with the comprehensive articles, interactive features and pictures at LiveScience.com.
Latest about heat wave
'The last 12 months have broken records like never before': Earth exceeds 1.5 C warming every month for entire year
By Ben Turner published
Every month has broken the temperature record of the previous for the past 12 months, and the signs of climate breakdown are already here, a new analysis shows.
Heat dome triggers record-breaking temperatures across US West Coast
By Sascha Pare published
Scorching temperatures up to 130 degrees Fahrenheit are expected across the U.S. West Coast in the coming days, as a heat dome hovers over the region.
Earth from space: Mysterious, slow-spinning cloud 'cyclone' hugs the Iberian coast
By Harry Baker published
This 2017 satellite photo shows an unusual cloud "cyclone" nestled up against the coastline of Spain and Portugal. Researchers are unsure what caused the strange structure's spin, but ocean eddies and an extreme heat wave likely played key roles.
More than 10 billion snow crabs starved to death off the coast of Alaska. But why?
By Sascha Pare published
A large population of snow crabs in the eastern Bering Sea collapsed after a marine heat wave in 2018 and 2019 that multiplied the crabs' caloric needs and drove them to starvation.
This was the hottest summer ever recorded on Earth
By Aimee Gabay published
June through August 2023 were the hottest three months ever recorded, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
Florida waters now 'bona fide bathtub conditions' as heat dome engulfs state
By Sascha Pare published
The unprecedented water temperatures — reaching up to 95 degrees Fahrenheit in some places — could intensify storms and hurricanes in the Sunshine State.
Why heat waves kill so quickly
By Stephanie Pappas last updated
Britain broke an all-time heat record this week, and a heat wave in the U.S. stretched from California to the South.
For the first time, scientists have named a heat wave
By Stephanie Pappas published
For the first time, authorities have given a heat wave a name. Scientists hope that naming extreme heat events will help the public protect itself.
Sign up for the Live Science daily newsletter now
Get the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox.