Stupid meteorology!

World recorded hottest day ever on July 21, 2024

Sunday, July 21 was the hottest day ever recorded, according to preliminary data from the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service, which has tracked such global weather patterns since 1940.

The global average surface air temperature on Sunday reached 17.09 degrees Celsius (62.76 degrees Fahrenheit) — slightly higher than the previous record set last July of 17.08 C (62.74 F) — as heatwaves scorched large swathes of the United States, Europe and Russia.

Carlo Buontempo, director of the Copernicus service, said that it was possible the beginning of this week could eclipse Sunday's record as heatwaves continue to sizzle across the world.

"When you have these peaks, they tend to cluster together," he said.

Last year, saw four days in a row break the record, from July 3 through July 6, as climate change, driven by the burning of fossil fuels, drove extreme heat across the Northern Hemisphere.

It was the talk of the town. After authorities sought to break a long-running heatwave in Chongqing by using cloud-seeding missiles to artificially bring rain, the Chinese megacity was blasted by an unusual weather event – an underwear storm.

Termed “the 9/2 Chongqing underwear crisis”, an unexpected windstorm on Monday brought gusts of up to 76mph (122km/h), scattering people’s laundry from balconies on the city’s high-rises. Douyin, China’s sister app to TikTok, was filled with videos of pants and bras flying through the skies, landing in the street and snagging on trees.
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Zhang Yixuan, the deputy director of the Chongqing Weather Modification Office, rdefended the government’s work at a press conference on Wednesday. Zhang said the winds, which had also brought down billboards and trees, were a naturally occurring convection, and not caused by the cloud seeding.

“There are definitely strong winds, but this is caused by natural conditions. Artificial rainfall will not cause extreme weather,” Zhang said.

Regardless, the incident has now linked bad weather with flying boxer shorts in the minds of Chongqing residents. Heavy rain was predicted again late last week, residents warned one another to bring in their laundry ahead of another underwear crisis.

“The people of Chongqing will never forget this heavy day,” said one.

An employee at a central Chongqing lingerie store told the Guardian that people weren’t yet rushing in to buy replacements, he said, but also it was “the season to buy new underwear” so he expected sales to increase anyway.

“[Chongqing people] laugh about it,” he said, “because life is fun.”