Climate change made 2024 the hottest year on record. The heat was deadly

Again and again, the numbers tell the same story: 2024 was Earth’s hottest year on record, knocking the previous record holder – 2023 – from the top spot (SN: 12/6/23). But temperatures alone cannot describe the human cost: humidity that challenges the body’s ability to cool itself; The night temperatures that deprive people of sleep; power outages; fire smoke; ruined crops; increasing cases of mosquito-borne diseases (SN: 20.9.24).

Meanwhile, record water temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico fueled Hurricanes Helene and Milton (SN: 10/9/24). Helena’s torrential rains caused flooding in six southeastern US states, killing more than 200 people (SN: 10/1/24).

Other parts of the world have their own stories to tell about the impact of the extreme heat of 2024. Here are some of those accounts.

Phoenix | May to September

Arizona’s capital experienced 113 consecutive days of daytime temperatures exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit, with hundreds of heat-related deaths recorded. Phoenix has one of the largest urban heat island magnitudes in the world: the city’s temperatures are about 12 degrees higher than those in surrounding rural areas.

Mexico City | May-June

An extreme heat wave, on top of a prolonged drought, caused power outages and was linked to more than 120 deaths. The resulting water shortage raised fears that North America’s largest metropolis was just weeks away from Day Zero – a theoretical day when the region would run out of water.

São Paulo | August-September

Extreme heat in the Southern Hemisphere winter plus prolonged drought fueled wildfires in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest. Particulate matter in Sao Paulo’s air was 14 times the World Health Organization’s recommended limit, making the city the most polluted in the world for four consecutive days, from September 9 to September 12.

Rio de Janeiro | March

During a heat wave in Brazil, the maximum temperature measured reached 107.6°F. But it felt even hotter. The heat index—a measurement that also includes humidity—soared to a record 144.1°F, testing the limits of people’s heat tolerance.

Manila | APRIL

The Philippine megalopolis of over 14 million people was inundated by a deadly 15-day heat wave, an event that would have been impossible without climate change. The heat brought water shortages, crop losses and school closures.

Paris | July-August

The temperatures during the Olympics may not have broken records, but they were still scorching. Without climate change, Paris would have been about 5 degrees colder, the researchers determined. This made the Games more dangerous for athletes. Europe is the fastest warming continent in the world, warming at a rate twice the global average.

Longyearbyen | July-August

August temperatures in the world’s northernmost settlement, Norway’s Spitsbergen Island, were the hottest ever recorded for the month, topping out at 68°F — more than 3 degrees higher than the previous record set by in 1997. In July, the ice caps broke the all-time record for daily melting, losing ice at five times the normal rate.

Bamako | February-April

Heat waves across West Africa’s Sahel region caused power outages and increased hospital admissions. From April 1 to April 4, a hospital in Mali’s capital recorded a total of 102 deaths; last year, the hospital recorded 130 deaths for the entire month of April. Climate change increased daytime highs by 2.7 degrees and kept nights 3.6 degrees warmer than usual.

Gaza | APRIL

A three-day heat wave exacerbated the humanitarian crisis in Palestine. Nearly 2 million people displaced in refugee camps and overcrowded shelters lacked protection from the heat and faced water and food shortages, power outages, limited access to health care and an increase in waterborne diseases.

Delhi | May-June

India’s capital territory endured 40 consecutive days of daytime highs reaching 104°F, with a new record set on May 28 of 121.8°F. The unrelenting heat killed over 100 people, estimates non-profit organization HeatWatch India.

East Antarctica | July

At the height of winter, temperatures across much of the continent hovered at -4°F, about 50 degrees above normal. The event was the largest temperature anomaly this year.