Key Facts Of The Day 8/2

Hurricanes

• Hawaii could see a big hurricane season, but most homes are unprepared.
  • Two-thirds of the single-family homes on Oahu, an island of 1 million people, have no hurricane protections.
  • Hawaii faces increased odds of a tropical cyclone that come with any El Niño year combined with climate-fueled ocean warming.
• AccuWeather is forecasting 13 to 17 named storms this year, higher than the initial forecast of 11 to 15 storms issued in March.
  • Additionally, Accuweather is forecasting four to eight hurricanes, one to three major hurricanes, and two to four direct U.S. impacts.

Wildfires

• As of Wednesday, 67 large active wildfires have burned 388,245 acres across AK, AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, NM, OR, TX, UT, and WA. This year to date, 30,700 wildfires have burned 1,185,784 acres across the country.
• In Arizona, 12 fires have burned 35,640 acres as of Wednesday.
• In California, 6 fires have burned 85,404 acres as of Wednesday.
  • The York Fire burned 80,437 acres and was 23% contained as of Wednesday.
• In New Mexico, 13 fires have burned 96,865 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Texas, 2 fires have burned 1,492 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Washington, 1 fire has burned 15,349 acres as of Wednesday.

Extreme Heat

• Around 55 million Americans are under heat alerts as the heat index hits triple digits across the South.
  • The heat index in Shreveport, Louisiana, reached 111 degrees Tuesday, while New Orleans was 109 degrees.
  • In Texas, Dallas and Austin reached a heat index of 108 and 106 degrees, respectively, on Tuesday, while Corpus Christi had a scorching 112-degree heat index.
  • The heat index in Oklahoma City hit 106 degrees, while Joplin, Missouri, was at 110.
• A report by Climate Central found that climate change boosted July’s heat for 81% of the world’s population.
  • During July, nearly 7 billion people experienced at least one day amplified threefold by climate change.
• July was the hottest month on record for more than two dozen U.S. cities.
  • Phoenix, Arizona, became the first U.S. city to have an average monthly temperature above 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • The southernmost city in the U.S., Key West, had its hottest month, as did Miami and Tampa Bay.
  • Another record was set in America’s northernmost town, Utqiagvik, Alaska.
  • Baton Rouge, Louisiana, shattered its previous record for the warmest month, beating it by 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Las Vegas, Nevada, had its warmest month, breaking the old record by 1.1 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Albuquerque, New Mexico, also saw its warmest month in July.
  • Several locations in Texas, including Austin, Brownsville, and Corpus Christi, had their warmest month in July.

New Reports and Data

• An August 2023 study found that climate change boosted July’s heat for 81% of the world’s population.
• An August 2023 study found that offshore wind could supply up to 25% of U.S. electricity demand by 2050 without spiking the wholesale cost of electricity.
• An August 2023 study found that average winter wave heights have grown by as much as a foot in the last 50 years due to rising temperatures.