There’s a Word for Los Angeles’ Future: Hot

Posted on Jun 21, 2012

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A study released by UCLA on Thursday predicts that Southern California will be even hotter over the next 50 years. The number of days over 95 degrees is expected to triple in downtown Los Angeles by 2060 and in at least one other part of Southern California is projected to increase by five times.

The study, which looked at factors including coastlines, mountains and urban areas, used a supercomputer in producing a climate model said to be 2,500 times more precise than earlier ones for the region. Increased heat would cause less mountain snowfall during winters, meaning less runoff and greater strain on Los Angeles’ water supply, an official of the L.A. Department of Water and Power warned. —CN

Los Angeles Times:

By the middle of the century, the number of days with temperatures above 95 degrees each year will triple in downtown Los Angeles, quadruple in portions of the San Fernando Valley and even jump five-fold in a portion of the High Desert in L.A. County, according to a new UCLA climate change study.

The study, released Thursday, is the first to model the Southland’s complex geography of meandering coastlines, mountain ranges and dense urban centers in high enough resolution to predict temperatures down to the level of micro climate zones, each measuring 2 1/4 square miles. The projections are for 2041 to 2060.

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