What is a heat dome?

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**Bababam** (1:01)
What is a Heat Dom? Thanks for asking! The Pacific Northwest is typically a mild region when it comes to weather. But in late June, Western Canada experienced record temperatures, with the province of British Columbia hit particularly hard. Temperatures are usually around 21 degrees Celsius on the Pacific Coast, but reached 49.5 degrees in Lytton, a village around 100 miles to the northeast of Vancouver. Cities on the other side of the border weren't spared either, with Portland and Seattle both seeing their respective record temperatures smashed. We used to talk of heat waves, but observers have labelled the latest situation a Heat Dome. What's the science behind these extreme temperatures? Meteorologists have advised that the term Heat Dome isn't scientific, but is being used by the media to describe a ridge of high pressure, which builds up and effectively acts as a block. The high pressure creates sinking air, which compresses air on the ground. Hot air is trapped over certain areas, preventing other weather systems from moving in. In this case, recent storms in the Western Pacific led to a very wavy jet stream. The jet stream, a band of strong wind in the Earth's atmosphere, is what usually keeps weather systems moving. The Heat Dome in the Pacific Northwest is being caused by two different pressure systems, which have become stored despite being in a place they wouldn't usually be. How dangerous is the Heat Dome? The effects on nature can be seen by the number of fires that have started on the Canadian-American border due to heat and dryness. But these extreme temperatures are dangerous for humans too.
Close to 500 sudden deaths were recorded in Canada in the last five days of June. Many of those who died were people living alone in unventilated homes. The Heat Dome is having a disruptive impact on daily life. Some public transportation routes aren't operating, schools are closed and so are vaccination centers. Cities have set up cooling shelters in order to protect their local populations.
To what extent are heat domes due to climate change? The connection between global warming and extreme heat waves is an obvious one to make. The temperature in our atmosphere has risen significantly compared to pre-industrial times. Experts have suggested that without global warming caused by human pollution, such a heat wave would only occur naturally once every millennium. In related news, an upcoming report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was recently leaked. It suggests that drastic climate change effects are likely to hit earlier than previously expected.
There you have it. Now you know what a heat dome is.
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