Stay Curious

SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AND UNLOCK ONE MORE ARTICLE FOR FREE.

Sign Up

VIEW OUR Privacy Policy


Discover Magazine Logo

WANT MORE? KEEP READING FOR AS LOW AS $1.99!

Subscribe

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?

FIND MY SUBSCRIPTION
Advertisement

As Weather Extremes Increase in 2023, Global Weirding Becomes a Better Term

Wildfires and increased temperatures continued to shatter records in 2023. Learn why global weirding does a better job of describing these events.

Canadian wildfires in 2023 were the worst on record, engulfing American cities like New York in smoke. (Credit: Jesse Winter/Bloomberg via Getty Images) Jesse Winter/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter for the latest science news

Sign Up

While temperatures in Phoenix soared above 110 degrees Fahrenheit for a record-shattering 31 straight days in July, people began turning up in emergency rooms with third-degree burns they’d suffered after falling — their skin seared by blistering hot pavement. Although not unprecedented, burn specialists said the number and severity of injuries were much higher than ever before.

Meanwhile, 30,000 feet up, the jet stream had become deranged. Its wavy, loopy and swirling pattern helped lock heat domes in place, like the one over south-central Arizona. Meteorologist Jeff Berardelli called the pattern “insane.” University of Pennsylvania climate scientist Michael Mann likened it to a Vincent Van Gogh painting.

In Canada, by midsummer, wildfire season was already twice as bad as any other on record, thanks to abnormally warm and dry conditions. By early September, 63,700 square miles had burned — about half the size of South Carolina. Far-flung smoke from the ...

Stay Curious

JoinOur List

Sign up for our weekly science updates

View our Privacy Policy

SubscribeTo The Magazine

Save up to 40% off the cover price when you subscribe to Discover magazine.

Subscribe
Advertisement

0 Free Articles