www.climatechangecell-bd.org

A heat wave is a large pocket of hot air moving into an area of cooler air. I use the term cooler since 90 degree air is cooler than 80 degree air.

But are these heat waves becoming stronger and happening more often? Yes.

As the Earth increases it’s temperature and there is less white space on the Earth to reflect the Sun’s rays, the Earth’s temperature heats up. Let’s step back for a moment, what are the white spaces on the Earth? They are large slabs of ice that help regulate the temperature of the Earth. Examples of these large slabs are Glaciers (like the one that covers most of Greenland), the Arctic and Antarctic ice sheets, and large frozen deserts or Tundras.

However, as the Earth’s temperature increases these ice sheets melt and there are less white sheets on the Earth’s face. The more ice that melts the more heat on the earth. The more heat on the Earth, the more pockets of heated air. Once this heated air gets pushed around the planet it picks up more and more heat and turns into a wave of heat. These heat waves are increasing as the Earth’s temperate increases.