Four Stories Illustrate Just How Hot It Is

It's one tangible sign of just how hot things have been lately: The average American is expected to spend a record $719 to cool their homes between June and September, a spike of about 8% over last year, reports CNET. The annual price increase from $661—cited in a report by the National Energy Assistance Directors Association and the Center for Energy Poverty and Climate—is the biggest in at least a decade. One reason: Last year was the hottest summer on record, but this year is forecast to be worse. Other heat-related headlines:

• One very hot year: World heat has been breaking records for a full year now. May was the 12th consecutive month in which average global temperatures exceeded all observations since records began in 1850, reports the Washington Post. The data is from the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service. Global temps also averaged 1.6 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels over the last year, more than the 1.5-degree threshold pledged at the 2015 Paris Agreement.
• Heat dome: California and the Southwest are currently sweltering under a heat dome bringing record-high temperatures, reports NBC News. The National Weather Service has been warning people to cancel outdoor activities. Temperatures in places such as Phoenix (forecast to hit 113 degrees Thursday), Vegas (112), and Death Valley (121) were 10 to 25 degrees above normal. The heat is expected to spread into Oregon and Washington next.

• Deaths rising: Last summer, the death certificates of more than 2,300 people in the US mentioned excessive heat—the highest number since records began 45 years ago, reports the AP. Nearly three-quarters of the heat deaths were in Arizona, Texas, Nevada, Florida, and Louisiana. Those five states account for 61% of heat deaths in the US over the last five years.

(More heat stories.)