Australia’s worst heatwave since black summer made five times more likely by global heating, analysis finds

Extreme heat ‘is getting worse and whether we like it or not … there’s ultimately a limit to what we can actually physically cope with,’ scientist says

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Human-caused global heating made the intense heatwave that affected much of Australia in early January five times more likely, new analysis suggests.

The heatwave earlier this month was the most severe since the 2019-20 black summer, with temperatures over 40C in Melbourne and Sydney, even hotter conditions in regional Victoria and New South Wales, and extreme heat also affecting Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania.