What's Your Wet Bulb Risk Level? 

Help refill the Community Resilience Award Pool here: www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=T8XXNNXVPVTZU All overflow in the next week goes to Dustin! Dustin is awesome. One day we were talking about some real downer stuff and he paused and he said "Dad doesn't give up". I think about that line and I'm so grateful to have that energy in our community. You're the best, man!

I’ve been farming in Kentucky since I was a kid. I’m almost 60 and the summers here are getting brutal. Where my farm is in the hills we get micro climates where the humidity and temperature are insane. I got heat sickness for the first time in my life a few years ago and it was no joke. I don’t think working during the hottest parts of the day outside here in summer will be possible for most people soon. Definitely not for the old.

Every time you say "let's get ready" it brings a little tear to my eye! You and the volunteers like Dustin are a beacon of hope in the center of all the gloom and doom. Thank y'all for more great info.

That is amazing about the fund! Moving is so hard! Thank you for what you do here. You are a treasure.

Good job Dustin!! Woo hoo AR community!!

There's been recent studies indicating dangerous temperatures start much lower than previously believed: The latest research indicates that the maximum wet-bulb temperature humans can tolerate is lower than previously thought, around 31°C (87.8°F) at 100% humidity, even for young and healthy individuals[4]. This is significantly lower than the widely accepted theoretical limit of 35°C (95°F) wet-bulb temperature. A study from Penn State University found that at wet-bulb temperatures above 31°C, the body can no longer effectively cool itself through sweating and begins gaining heat from the environment[4]. The critical wet-bulb temperature was found to range from 25-28°C in hot, dry environments and 30-31°C in warm, humid environments[4]. These findings suggest that the combination of high heat and humidity becomes dangerous for humans at lower levels than previously believed. Older adults and other vulnerable populations are likely to have even lower heat tolerance limits[4]. Furthermore, a 2020 study reported instances where wet-bulb temperatures briefly reached 35°C (95°F), previously thought to be almost non-existent, indicating we may be closer to the theoretical survivability limit than expected[1]. While wet-bulb temperatures above 35°C were once considered rare, recent data shows over 1,000 readings of 31°C (87.8°F) and around 80 readings of 33°C (91.4°F), highlighting the increasing frequency of extreme humid heat events[1]. The areas most at risk of reaching dangerous wet-bulb temperatures are the humid tropics, including the monsoon regions of South Asia, Southeast Asia, and West Africa[3]. However, other regions like the Gulf Coast in the U.S. could also experience life-threatening conditions during heat waves. In summary, the latest research points to a lower heat and humidity tolerance threshold for humans, around 31°C wet-bulb temperature, which is being approached more frequently due to climate change[1][3][4]. Citations: [1] earthsky.org/earth/wet-bulb-temperature-explained-dangers/ [2] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wet-bulb_temperature [3] www.reuters.com/business/environment/how-is-climate-change-driving-dangerous-wet-bulb-temperatures-2023-08-09/ [4] www.psu.edu/news/research/story/humans-cant-endure-temperatures-and-humidities-high-previously-thought/ [5] www.theguardian.com/science/2022/jul/31/why-you-need-to-worry-about-the-wet-bulb-temperature (I used Perplexity.AI to get this information)

As a Northern European who moved to the Southern U.S... thank you for this. Not enough people are concerned that in much of the U.S. you simply cannot live without power. I once locked myself out while working outside in 90+ degree + high humidity, and felt I'd die if I wouldn't get back into A.C. soon. Did not know this kind of deadly weather growing up (except cold maybe... but it's possibly to take measures against the cold without electricity). The chart makes me wish I lived further north.

FYI: Key West, Fla., recorded an all-time record high heat index on May 15, 2024 of 114.4°F

... I am NOT made of Meat ! ... I am 95% fat by volume, which means that heat will just make me sizzle and spit until I vaporize into an oily, smelly haze ... My wife can hardly wait ! ...

Excellent job Dustin!!!! I will donate when things are less tight ❤

I work in plant and animal conservation. These maps make me wonder how our wild cousins will be able to adapt. Different species are going to have very different physiological tolerances and behavioral strategies. It's going to be a different world out there.

Good explanation and informative . Living in SW Florida for 34 years this is not a suprise at all . With hurricane threats and periods of time without infrastructure this is frightening. The building frenzy continues here as droves of people move here. If my children snd grandchildren had not grown up here I would be packing up & moving !

This was a great video. I really learned more than I already thought I knew! Can't wait to have you on as my guest! Sandy

We are definitely more humid than before in Georgia. Our temps haven't been higher (yet) but I can be inside, AC blowing and still dripping sweat.

Graphics are fantastic, thanks once again!

Some of the best science communication I've ever seen, thank you!

You rock Dustin!

Do you think meteorologists may begin using things like "wet bulb watch" during their forecasts, or tell what the current wet bulb is like they do with windchill and heat index? Maybe not now, but in 10-15 years perhaps.

Thank you. Local news description of wet bulb left me wondering how anyone was alive in Houston or New Orleans, much less other countries to the south.

Thanks for sharing this work and your knowledge!

Do you do the outlooks for any other areas other than North America. I would be quite interested in where I am which is Alberta, Canada

Dustin is amazing! This community is amazing! 🥹🥹🥹

The progression of level 5 risk from 1.5C to 2C is stunning. 3-4 C is going to be quite a ride.

New subscriber. Very grateful to have found this channel. Are you on Twitter/X? While it can be a cesspool, there are many climate aware folks there who could benefit from your analysis. As a person who has lived with severe anxiety most of my life, I absolutely love your approach as factual but non-alarmist. Please keep yourself safe in this ongoing pandemic and troubling time. 💕

Liked, subscribed and algo boost!

awesome maps, thanks for sharing. would be great if this included Puerto Rico as a part of the US since they are nearly completely dependent on the US policy, and also a colony.

Thanks!

Texas has its own power grid and therefore cannot import or export power to other states. When we hit 120+° the grid will fry and we will die.

2024 is already forecasted to have a 66% chance of being the hottest year on record, and a 95% chance of being in the top two hottest years. One thing I've noticed this year in Tennessee is that although the measured temperature isn't necessarily a shocking headline (yet), the humidity has felt terrible this year. Even at 75-80F measured temperature, the 50-60% humidity is pretty hard to tolerate if outside on a prolonged basis.

Interesting topic, but I'm unable to find what the actual wet bulb temperature or duration your map's colored risk levels 0 to 4+ correspond to as dangerous. I've replayed the video and looked at the map on the American Resiliency website, but all I see is at 1:33 "...95 degrees and high humidity", or broadly (without humidity or dewpoints) at 4:16. Thanks for your insight on that wet bulb temp. Where I live in Doña Ana County NM, we show a 4+ risk, while slightly "cooler" and drier Albuquerque in Bernalillo County is shown as a 2 risk...seems different than possible, other than how we average more 95+ or 100F+ highs and 70+ lows than ABQ. My red flag on that map is being grouped with all the 4+ in humid parts of Texas east of the Big Bend. In my county or El Paso TX, rarely is the dewpoint over 50F when our temperature is over 95F, and on our hand full of 105F+ days in summer, the dewpoint is usually

Thanks for presenting this, very helpful to have a map. Just to confirm, the map on the left is 1.5 C and the right is 2.0 C?

What is sous vide incident? I live in Yuma AZ

Honeywell mission statement "The Future Is What We Make It". Ironic, no?

Wet bulb is great for humid places of the world such as the tropics

Notice how the coast of the Pacific Northwest barely changes, wild.

As the climate changes due to factors beyond human control, human Innovation must step up to provide energy and climate control systems for spaces in which humans can live.

I am SHOCKED beyond measure Cincinnati is not in a high risk for WBE!😳😳😳 That community’s climate is HORRIBLE now!😳

I came across a video that tangentially relates to this topic so I wanted to share: Phase Change Materials (PCM) for personal cooling Check out this video on how you can make a simple PCM at home that you can use to help keep yourself cool in the heat: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Nqxjfp4Gi0k.html

Hawaii?

Higher wet bulb is not cool. More like this wet bulb map is sooo hot!

For future reference, "sous vide" is French, not Latin, so it's pronounced "soo veede", not "sooss veeday".

0 fk yeah.

It's time for me to move out of Missouri then. 😬☠

I moved cross-country to a lower risk area, and focused my efforts on buying a home that has enough land for a permaculture garden. Now I'm fixing my 100 y.o. home in SE Pennsylvania, including digging swales and installing rainwater capture, as well as installing passive cooling features like tinting some windows, replacing wall insulation, and replacing caulk around windows to keep the outside, out.

Thanks!