So Far, More Heat Waves Do Not Mean More Heat Deaths
The spread of air conditioning may have kept some people from dying in this summer's extreme heat. But studies project more heat-related illnesses as the climate warms.
More Americans die from the effects of heat than of any other form of severe weather, and this summer has seen one heat wave after another. Some places in the U.S. and elsewhere have recorded their highest temperatures ever. In fact, the average temperature around the planet over the past four years has been the highest ever recorded, and nine of the 10 hottest years were all in this century. (The other was 1998.)
All of this would suggest that more people must be experiencing heat-related illness or death. But it's more complicated than that.
Americans may be getting smarter about heat
In the U.S.,
