This week, in the Tierra has occurred the hottest day ever recordedbreaking the 1979 record in two consecutive days. That is why British researchers have released the results of a study that sought to find out Up to what temperatures can humans withstand.
After different tests, the scientists of the roehampton universityin United Kingdomhave managed to determine that the limit at which people are no longer capable of regulating their body temperature is between 40 and 50 degrees Celsius.
Record global temperature: July 4 was the hottest day in the history of the planet
For the analysis, the team focused on looking at the range of temperatures in which the resting metabolic rate -a measure of the minimum energy consumed by the body to perform basic processes- can continue to control vital internal organs without consuming more energy than normal, known as core temperature.
“This research provides fundamental insights into how we react to suboptimal environments and how ‘optimum’ differs between people with different characteristics,” explains Lewis Halseyprincipal investigator of the study and professor of Life and Health Sciences at the university.
How was it discovered up to what temperature the human being supports?
The experiments led by Halsey began several years ago. In 2021, a series of tests were carried out where they were placed 13 semi-nude participantsunder 60 years of age, in a chamber in which four different temperature conditions were replicated for one hour.
The weather was changing between 40 and 50 degrees Celsius and between 25 and 50% humidity, while the researchers measured the participants’ resting metabolic rates, core temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, and respiratory rate. Then, compared the results with control measurements Taken at a comfortable body temperature, 28 degrees Celsius with 50% humidity.
This is the heat: Argentina becomes aware of climate change
In recent research, the team conducted another series of tests to measure heart function in detail, using a state-of-the-art echocardiograph. To do this, they exposed 24 participants to 50 degrees Celsius and 25% humidity conditions while taking the measurements.
As a result of these tests it was found that heart rate increased more in women than in men when they were in extreme temperatures. “We found some considerable changes in heart function responses to heat between categories of people, the most striking being between the sexes,” Halsey explained.
It should be noted that the studies have been carried out with a small group of very homogeneous participants in age range and region of the world in which they reside. Despite this, the team assures that their experiments are still ongoing, so it is likely that they will add more variety to the sample in the future.
“We are building a picture of how he responds the body to heat stresstheir ability to adapt, the limits of those adaptations and, most importantly, how responses vary from one individual to another. In a warming world, these insights are increasingly valuable.“, stressed the researcher.
We must prepare for more heat waves: between 2023 and 2027 temperatures will be higher than ever
The worrying increase in temperature in the world
Last Tuesday, July 4, was the warmest day ever recorded and this week the global average temperature broke the record for the second consecutive day, according to preliminary data published this Wednesday by the US Weather Observatory.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) specified that the medium temperature of air from the earth’s surface ranged from 17° y 18°C. The previous record dates from Monday the 3rd of the same month when for the first time the indices showed 17,01°C, a new indicator of the climate impact of burning fossil fuels.
Temperatures were so high in some parts of the country that the Weather Service added a new color
This trend has no prospect of abating. According to specialists, the record achieved yesterday could break again this season since the global average temperature will continue to rise until the end of July and the beginning of August, not only due to the boreal summer, but also due to the El Niño phenomenon that arrived in the Pacific Ocean, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
As if that was not enough, the average temperature of the Earth’s surface during 2022 was positioned as the fifth warmest since modern records began and the trend indicates that the values will increase. According to NASAthe last nine years have been the hottest in historyoh the temperature of the earth has increased about 1.1°C since the end of the 19th century.
“This warming trend is alarming,” he said. Bill Nelson, NASA administrator. “Our warming climate is already making its mark: forest fires are intensifying; hurricanes are getting stronger; droughts are wreaking havoc and sea levels are rising” he emphasized in a report published earlier this year.