India recorded second warmest June-August this year since 1970: Study

Climate Central’s seasonal analysis from June to August 2024 offers a striking look into the influence of human-induced climate change on global temperatures, with a detailed focus on India. The report leverages temperature anomalies and the Climate Shift Index (CSI) to illustrate the magnitude of climate change’s role in raising temperatures across the region.
India recorded its second-hottest season since satellite data tracking began in 1970. Over this three-month period, temperatures were at least three times more likely to spike due to climate change for 29 days. Approximately 20.5 million Indians faced temperatures influenced by climate change for at least 60 days (CSI 5), underscoring India’s vulnerability to extreme heat compared to other Southern Asian nations.
Of India’s 1.38 billion population, around 426 million people — almost a third — were exposed to potentially scorching temperatures for at least seven days, exceeding 90 per cent of the local temperature records from the 1991-2020 baseline period. More than 112 million people faced over a month of dangerous heatwaves, raising significant public health concerns.
Several Indian cities bore the brunt of climate change-fuelled heatwaves. Thiruvananthapuram, Vasai-Virar, Kavaratti, Thane, Mumbai, and Port Blair each endured over 70 days when temperatures were at least three times more likely due to climate change. Mumbai alone experienced 54 extreme heat days, while cities like Kanpur and Delhi saw temperatures soar above 39°C for prolonged periods, with climate change making these extremes four times more likely.
The Climate Shift Index (CSI) measures the influence of climate change on daily temperatures. A CSI score between 1 and 5 reflects the probability that a day’s temperatures have increased due to human-driven climate change. For example, a CSI of 2 indicates that the temperature on a given day is twice as likely to occur in today’s altered climate compared to a world without human-induced changes. This provides a concrete metric to assess the local and global impacts of climate change on heat levels.