Pakistan set to break temperature record

Pakistan may break a global temperature record this week.

An area of high pressure over South Asia and the Middle East is causing heatwaves, and 21 countries saw temperatures top 110°F (43°C) this week. Nawabshah in southern Pakistan saw 118°F, and is predicted to near — and potentially exceed — 122°F, an April record also set in Nawabshah, in 2018.

Last year was the hottest ever globally, thanks to a strong El Niño climate pattern, but the corresponding La Niña has not brought temperatures down as much as expected. The pressure dome is set to move over central Asia, and as summer approaches in the Northern Hemisphere, billions can expect “unusual and dangerously hot weather conditions,” The Washington Post reported.