'Records can be broken by several degrees' - What’s behind the record shattering heat waves?

Climate scientists have used models to confirm that burning fossil fuels made the extreme heat wave in parts of the US and Canada hotter and more likely.

When a heat wave began to scorch Canada and the US in late June — killing elderly people alone in their homes and fueling wildfires that wiped out an entire village — scientists said burning fossil fuels had changed the climate enough to make the temperature extremes worse. Global warming made the hottest day of the North American heat wave 150 times more likely and 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) hotter, according to a rapid attribution study released Thursday by an international team of 27 scientists from the World Weather Attribution initiative (WWA). Temperatures broke records in Oregon and Washington, in the US, and in British Columbia, in Canada. They reached a high of 49.6 C (121 F) that researchers say would have been "virtually impossible" without climate change.

The study, which has not yet been published in a peer-reviewed journal, is the latest example of scientists using models to swiftly assess the role of greenhouse gas emissions in exacerbating extreme weather. Its findings dispel a myth prevalent in rich countries that climate change only hurts people far away from them or in the distant future. "We are entering uncharted territory," said study co-author Sonia Seneviratne, from the Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science at ETH Zurich in Switzerland. "Much higher temperature records will be reached if we don't manage to stop greenhouse gas emissions and halt global warming."
Previous heat records were "pulverized" by such large margins that "something else must be going on," said Stefan Rahmstorf, head of Earth System Analysis at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany, who was not involved in the study. "The study is valid and state of the art."

Climate change has made heat waves hotter, longer and more common. By burning fossil fuels — which release gases that trap the sun's heat like a greenhouse — humans have warmed the planet by about 1.1 C above preindustrial levels. This raises the chance of record-breaking temperatures.

Lytton, a village in the Canadian province of British Columbia, broke the country's heat record on July 2 when temperatures shot almost 5 C above the previous record of 45 C.

The next day it was destroyed by a wildfire.

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[lector]

people started wearing masks only when others are actually dying from the virus, so you can expect some actual carbon reduction to begin when half of earth is becoming uninhabitable.

[geoffreyeljefe]

This was the hottest summer ever.

Correction. This was the coolest summer of the rest of your life

[gregorwachter]

"That's really warm and I am australian."
True words were spoken

[misterfunnybones]

It's fine, my yacht has air conditioning & the tender garage has several watercraft offering more exposure to the cool water. After I landed my helicopter on the yacht's bow helipad, it was another cool day on the ocean. I'm now using my laptop on the deck five port lounge to plan my space vacation...

[markgalbraith]

we've clearly passed the tipping point over a decade ago...these records are now the norm..get used to it !!!

[Dreamwarrior]

This video doesn’t explain “Heat domes” a but misleading.

[syriuszb]

Oil companies in the 80s and 90s: well, well, well. We decided to make our oil platforms higher. Why? Ehm... Aesthetics? For sure not global warming and sea rise, that's not even real. I promise.
Politicians today: global warming? Is it even real? Maybe we can just ignore it? All who donate to me want this be swept under the rug, so why should I care?

[myvt]

This is what we get, they have been preaching about this since the 1960s. All for the love of money, our opulence, and laziness.

[samapanbhadury]

Oh no! heat wave in 1st world countries! Now the world should really do something.

[athome]

I thought you guys are going to explain how heat dome forms. Am I the only one thinking that way?!

[sergisanz]

Is no one going to mention what will happen to wildlife? We can hide in air conditioned rooms but what about animals? Will they be able to survive?

[smallstudiodesign]

Misleading headline: terrible analysis and absolutely no explanation of what a heat dome is.

[rickoshay]

My Wife is a Candy rep for Mars, she has a storage room that is usually cool. It was hot enough that all of the candy was ruined except the hard coated Skittles.
This was on Vancouver Island B.C.
The storage manager said there was never a need to have air conditioning before. 
In this moderate climate (a rain forrest) the needles on the cedar trees are turning brown and tinder dry. Fire season is going to be brutal.

[smallstudiodesign]

00:02:44 — Meanwhile ... Canada is *NOT* “... the USA”.

[allyourcode]

Humans: *Drive SUVs*
Also humans: Why is it so hot? Let me fire up the AC.

[gtanusetiawan]

We’ve been warned for years and now we are actually seeing it happening before our eyes.

This is not a big surprise event, we all know it’s going to happen. It’s just that most of us think it’ll happen way into the future and therefore “not our problem”.

[Kenruli]

Finland normally in summer: Rain, rain and more rain to this year summer HOT!

[pcuimac]

We know about increasing temperatures as a fact since 1991. That's also when I heard it at university in our physics colloquium from Prof. Schellnhuber.

[beteljuise]

Me who lived his whole life in a desert area, "welcome to the party pals"

[kinngrimm]

I guess future generations should have really effcient sweat glands.