那些涼爽宜人的夏夜發(fā)生了什么事?

那些涼爽宜人的夏夜發(fā)生了什么事?

One of the best parts about the waning days of summer are the cool summer nights. After a humid, hot day, you look forward to the evening when the temperature dips as the sun goes down.

夏夜是炎炎夏日漸逝的最好時光之一。在潮濕炎熱的一天之后，你期待著太陽下山時氣溫下降的夜晚。

But those cool summer nights seem to be a victim of climate change.

但那些涼爽的夏夜似乎是氣候變化的受害者。

This July was the hottest month ever measured. And as summer days continue to get more scorching, it's harder for evenings to cool off.

今年7月是有史以來最熱的一個月。隨著夏天越來越熱，晚上很難涼快下來。

Photo: Zurijeta/Shutterstock

Climate change journalist Robinson Meyer writes in The Atlantic, "Across the lower 48 states, summer nights are now warmer than they have been at any other point since 1900, according to data from the climate scientist Zeke Hausfather. Daily minima—in other words, the temperature at the coolest part of the night—are regularly hotter now than they were even during the warmest years of the Dust Bowl. Daytime highs have actually yet to eclipse that mark."

氣候變化記者羅賓遜·邁耶在《大西洋月刊》上寫道:“根據(jù)氣候科學(xué)家齊克·豪薩爾特的數(shù)據(jù)，在美國48個較低的州，夏夜比1900年以來的任何時候都要溫暖。”每天的最低氣溫——換句話說，夜晚最冷的時候的氣溫比沙塵暴最溫暖的時候還要高。實(shí)際上，白天的高點(diǎn)還沒有超過這個水平。”

Warm nights have become more common throughout the U.S. A recent climate assessment from North Carolina State University looked specifically in the Southeast and found large increases in nighttime temperatures with modest increases in daytime temperatures.

溫暖的夜晚在美國變得越來越普遍。北卡羅來納州立大學(xué)最近對美國東南部地區(qū)進(jìn)行的一項(xiàng)氣候評估發(fā)現(xiàn)，夜間氣溫大幅上升，而白天氣溫則略有上升。

"The number of warm nights (minimum temperature above 75°F) has doubled on average compared to the first half of the 20th century and locally has increased at most [weather] stations," researchers wrote.

研究人員寫道:“與20世紀(jì)上半葉相比，溫暖的夜晚(最低溫度在75華氏度以上)的數(shù)量平均增加了一倍，而且當(dāng)?shù)卮蠖鄶?shù)氣象站的夜間溫度都有所上升。”

Record-breaking temps

破紀(jì)錄的氣溫

The summer of 2018 was the hottest yet for nighttime temps. The nighttime temperature, averaged nationwide for June, July and August, was the hottest ever, recorded at 60.9 degrees, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

2018年夏天是夜間溫度最高的一年。根據(jù)美國國家海洋和大氣管理局(NOAA)的數(shù)據(jù)，美國6月、7月和8月的夜間平均氣溫是有史以來最高的，達(dá)到60.9度。

Every state had an above-average summer minimum temperature. Meteorologists define summer as June 1 through Aug. 31.

每個州的夏季最低氣溫都高于平均水平。氣象學(xué)家將夏季定義為6月1日至8月31日。

When the atmosphere can't cool off at night, it's a sign of global warming due to human-caused conditions, according to NOAA and other climate experts.

美國國家海洋和大氣管理局(NOAA)和其他氣候?qū)＜冶硎?，?dāng)大氣在夜間無法降溫時，這是由于人為因素導(dǎo)致的全球變暖的跡象。

"In general, since records began in 1895, summer overnight low temperatures are warming at a rate nearly twice as fast as afternoon high temperatures for the U.S. and the 10 warmest summer minimum temperatures have all occurred since 2002," NOAA said in a statement.

美國國家海洋和大氣管理局在一份聲明中說:“總的來說，自從1895年有記錄以來，夏季夜間低溫變暖的速度幾乎是美國下午高溫變暖速度的兩倍。自2002年以來，夏季10個最溫暖的最低氣溫都出現(xiàn)過。”

And sweltering summer nights aren't just an inconvenience; they can be dangerous.

悶熱的夏夜不僅給人帶來不便;它們可能很危險(xiǎn)。

"The combination of high daytime and high nighttime temperatures can be really lethal because the body doesn’t have a chance to cool down during the nighttime hours," Lara Cushing, professor of environmental epidemiology at San Francisco State University, told The New York Times.

舊金山州立大學(xué)環(huán)境流行病學(xué)教授勞拉·庫欣在接受《紐約時報(bào)》采訪時表示:“白天高溫和夜間高溫的結(jié)合可能會造成致命的后果，因?yàn)槿梭w在夜間沒有機(jī)會降溫。”

And those risks are higher in places like the California coast, where people aren't used to soaring temperatures.

而在加州海岸等人們不習(xí)慣氣溫飆升的地方，這種風(fēng)險(xiǎn)更高。

"A hundred and five degrees in San Francisco is going to have a bigger impact probably than 105 degrees in Houston, Texas, where everybody has air conditioning and people are accustomed to dealing with high temperatures."

“舊金山的105度將比德克薩斯州休斯頓的105度產(chǎn)生更大的影響，那里每個人都有空調(diào)，人們已經(jīng)習(xí)慣了應(yīng)對高溫。”