Record Heatwave in Argentina Triggers Fresh Concern About Climate Change

Buenos Aires was hit by a major power outage this week that left thousands of homes without electricity amid a heatwave that has seen temperatures soar above 40ºC (104ºF), some of the highest in the world.  In other parts of the country, temperatures reached deadly levels--  up to 122 degrees in some areas.

Electricity distributors Edenor and Edesur both reported power outages as the high temperatures generated a spike in demand for energy to cool homes and businesses.

The National Electricity Regulatory Entity (ENRE) said Edenor’s power cut had affected 700,000 in the Buenos Aires area. Some 43,400 Edesur customers were left without power after failures of high-voltage lines hit two of its substations.  AySA, which provides drinking water in Buenos Aires, asked the population to optimize the use of water because the outage had also affected its purification system.

The intense heat resulted in freakish explosion of beetles in rural areas of the country  The town of Santa Isabel, in La Pampa, Argentina, was invaded by millions of brown beetles in houses, gardens and streets. 

For some it raised questions about climate change and more extreme weather. Argentina in recent years has seen unusual amounts of wild fires around its main river delta and the major Parana River drop to a nearly 80-year low water level.

The combination of rising heat and humidity is especially dangerous, as Texas A&M climate scientist Andrew Dessler explained in a Twitter thread. The human body generates heat, and at temperatures above around 82°F, the surrounding air no longer carries away enough heat to keep the body cool. The remaining options to avoid a dangerously overheating body involve air flow across the skin (for example from wind or a fan) or evaporating sweat. And as climate change draws more moisture from the soil into the atmosphere, thus increasing humidity, sweating offers less relief. At 100% relative humidity, the body can’t evaporate any sweat (hence ‘dry heat’ is less uncomfortable because of the body’s ability to cool itself by sweating).