It's been a tough summer filled with severe across the U.S., but according to experts, Northeast Ohio has fared better this year.
A heatwave is defined as a period of two or more days of high temperatures, according to the National Weather Service. But depending on where you are in the country, heatwaves can feel different.
In Northeast Ohio, summer temperatures average in the mid-80s. So, a heatwave would mean prolonged temperatures around 90 degrees or more.
鈥淚t's ... rather not common for our maximum temperature for the summer to reach over 95 degrees here" said Robert LaPlante with the National Weather Service Cleveland. 鈥淲hile points to the south, temperatures in the mid-90s are fairly common, and obviously down in the desert southwest temperatures well over 100 degrees are 鈥� common there.鈥�
Though there has been an due, in part, to human-caused climate change, LaPlante said Northeast Ohio may be faring better than other states.
鈥淲hat I can gather here locally is that the maximum temperature of any given summer has not risen appreciably -- hasn鈥檛 risen at all -- during the whole period of a record from, well, let鈥檚 say 1871 up through 鈥� now.鈥�
The longest heatwave in the Cleveland area occurred in September of 1953 where there was a nine-day stretch of temperatures 95 degrees or more, LaPlante said. Most recently, in 2020 there was a five-day heatwave where temperatures reached of 95 degrees or hotter.
The high temperatures across the U.S. if it weren鈥檛 for human-caused climate change, according to a by World Weather Attribution. refers to human activity leading to the increase of greenhouse gas emissions brought on by the use and burning of fossil fuels.
鈥淲ithout human induced climate change these heat events would however have been extremely rare,鈥� states the report produced by a group of international climate researchers. 鈥淢aximum heat like in July 2023 would have been virtually impossible to occur in the US/Mexico region and Southern Europe if humans had not warmed the planet by burning fossil fuels."
July was the worldwide, and, , heatwaves are the world鈥檚 deadliest weather events killing more people in the U.S. than hurricanes, tornadoes and floods combined.
According to researchers, change is necessary to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to prevent further warming and hotter, longer heatwaves in the future.
鈥淯nless the world rapidly stops burning fossil fuels, these events will become even more common and the world will experience heatwaves that are even hotter and longer-lasting,鈥� the World Weather Attribution report states. 鈥淎 heatwave like the recent ones would occur every 2-5 years in a world that is 2掳C warmer than the preindustrial climate."
The report鈥檚 conclusion is supported by recent research from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The panel鈥檚 found that environmental hazards become more likely as the planet grows warmer.
鈥淓very increment of warming results in rapidly escalating hazards,鈥� the report states. 鈥淢ore intense heatwaves, heavier rainfall and other weather extremes further increase risks for human health and ecosystems. In every region, people are dying from extreme heat.鈥�
Based on National Weather Service鈥檚 recorded temperatures, there鈥檚 鈥渘ot a lot of evidence鈥� that climate change is contributing to a rise in the maximum temperature each year, or to the frequency of heatwaves in Northeast Ohio, LaPlante said.
鈥淲hat has happened so far is that the average temperature for the minimum or the maximum temperature has risen some in the last 30 years,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ur new normals reflect over a degree warming for the overnight lows and the maximum temperatures during the summer, but the individual number of heatwaves in all has not changed.鈥�
Northeast Ohio has a few factors that help keep the region cool, LaPlante said, due to the cooling effect from Lake Erie and consistent rain events that help retain moisture in the soil.
鈥淢ost of the heating from the sun there goes into heating up the air here,鈥� he said. 鈥淎 lot of 鈥� the sunshine solar radiation is used to evaporate moisture. So as long as the soil moisture is near normal, it's harder to have the extreme heat in the eastern states.鈥�
This doesn鈥檛 mean Northeast Ohio is immune to the effects of climate change, said Christopher Col贸n, Northeast Ohio Regional Field Director at the Ohio Environmental Council.
鈥淣ortheast Ohio has the potential, the great potential to be a climate haven,鈥� Col贸n said. 鈥淏ut, you know, just because we're not seeing the great effects that places like Arizona and Texas are seeing now, we still will see those things in the future. We can be that haven, but we have to mitigate those effects now.鈥�
The best way to do that, Col贸n said, is to build out climate-resilient infrastructure.
鈥淲hen we're doing large revitalization projects, taking into account the effects of those projects on the environment,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o, including green infrastructure like permeable pavers, green spaces, things like that.鈥�
Col贸n also recommends communities consider growing their tree canopies as an option to keep neighborhoods and residents cool.
The communities [that] have more trees, have a lower ... average cool temperature in the community,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o, planting more trees in communities will help with some of the rising temperatures as well.鈥�
It's unlikely that Northeast Ohio will experience a major heatwave this year, LaPlante said. But it鈥檚 possible that the region could see summer temperatures extending into early fall.
