Currently in Los Angeles — July 18, 2023: A slight break from intense heat

The weather, currently.

Yesterday we got a bit of convection over the Ventura mountains. No, not in the form of proper thunderstorms but there was some cumulus build up. Also expecting some dense fog at the coast this morning. Otherwise, sunny skies and July weather will persist, with 80s and 90s away from the coast. Even warmer weather on the horizon for the weekend.

— Ade Adeniji

What you can do, currently.

The climate emergency doesn’t take the summer off. In fact — as we’ve been reporting — we’re heading into an El Niño that could challenge historical records and is already supercharging weather and climate impacts around the world.

When people understand the weather they are experiencing is caused by climate change it creates a more compelling call to action to do something about it.

If these emails mean something important to you — and more importantly, if the idea of being part of a community that’s building a weather service for the climate emergency means something important to you — please chip in just $5 a month to continue making this service possible.

Thank you!!

What you need to know, currently.

Shortly after midnight on Monday morning it was still a whopping 120°F (48.9°C) at Death Valley in California — the hottest early morning temperature reading in world history.

Here’s what the raw data looked like:

Even though this may not make global headlines, this feels to me like a major global milestone. Public health studies show that excessively hot overnight temperatures cause high death tolls during major heat waves, especially when overnight temperatures fail to fall below 90°F (32.2°C). The human body requires rest at night to recover, especially when subjected to high stress of record heat. Climate change — specifically the added humidity in the air due to increased evaporation rates — causes overnight temperatures to rise at a faster rate than daytime temperatures, worsening this trend.

—Eric Holthaus