How to stay cool in a heat wave

It’s not just you—it really has been absurdly hot in some areas of the US lately.

On June 15, it got to 115 degrees in Tucson, Arizona, the fourth hottest day in the city’s recorded history, according to the National Weather Service. The days leading up to and immediately following that had similar highs, with eight consecutive days topping out at or above 110 degrees.

This year isn’t as anomalous as it might seem, says Ladd Keith, an assistant professor in the College of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture at the University of Arizona. Five of the hottest years globally occurred after 2015, with nine of the 10 hottest years occurring after 2005. Last year was the hottest year ever recorded for the northern hemisphere.

Keith, chair of the college’s Sustainable Built Environments program, researches urban planning and climate change, with a focus on extreme heat.

Here, he talks about what people can do to keep their homes cool in extreme heat and why rising temperatures are not a problem unique to the Southwest.

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