NOS News•today, 5:42 PM
Countries in South and Southeast Asia have been experiencing extreme heat for days. 45 degrees were measured in Thailand, Myanmar and India and in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, the perceived temperature also reached that height.
The end of the heat wave does not yet appear in sight, which is why schools in the Philippines will remain closed for the next two days. In Thailand, where the heat has already claimed 30 lives this year, authorities are warning of “serious conditions”. In the north of the country, a temperature of 45 degrees was measured for the first time in history last week.
It is also well above 40 degrees in Cambodia, Myanmar and Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, schools were closed for a number of days due to the heat, but they will reopen tomorrow.
The heat is expected to last for a few more days. Cooler temperatures are expected in the region again in the coming month.
Fewer Indians go to the polls
The heat also appears to have affected the first round of voting in India’s national elections, which was held last week. Turnout in the world’s largest democracy was remarkably low: 4 percentage points lower compared to the first election phase in 2019. That is almost 8 million people.
According to scientists from the international research group World Weather Attribution (WWA), extreme heat waves on the South Asian subcontinent will become thirty times more likely in the future due to climate change.
Ten monthly records in a row
2023 was the hottest year ever recorded worldwide and experts say there is a good chance that that record will only stay in the books for one year. Since June last year, every month has been warmer than ever measured, good for ten monthly records in a row.
In addition to climate change, the high temperatures are also caused by the weather phenomenon El Niño. This occurs when the surface temperature of the water in the Pacific Ocean around the equator is warmer than average. In the tropics this can lead to extreme weather.
