Almost 150 million people across the United States woke up under a heat alert Friday ahead of what is expected to be another dangerously hot day across the country.
Blistering temperatures have plagued parts of the southern half of the lower 48 for most of the week. By the end of Friday, Phoenix is expected to notch its 28th straight day of temperatures spiking to 110 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. El Paso, Texas, with 42 days in a row of 100 F temperatures, has almost doubled its previous longest streak of days above the century mark.
As the South continues to bake, parts of the central Plains, the Midwest, the Great Lakes, the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast will also experience suffocating temperatures Friday and Saturday.
Highs 10-20 degrees above average Friday are expected to lead to record-setting highs in some cities, including Washington, D.C.; El Paso; and Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Washington could experience heat index values as high as 110 F on Friday and Saturday. For New York and Miami, forecasts say temperatures will feel like 100 F and 105 F, respectively.
The heat wave for the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast will be short-lived, with cooler temperatures arriving Sunday.
The Southwest and the southern Plains, however, will not receive the same heat relief as the northern regions.
Phoenix is forecast to experience highs above 110 F on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, bringing its streak to 31 days.
Earlier this week, the nonprofit research group Climate Central released new analysis on urban heat hot spots, revealing that more than 40 million people in the U.S. live in urban heat islands. The study specifically examined how much hotter it can feel in city cores compared to outlying areas and suburbs because of the excess of concrete, infrastructure and less vegetation.
And it's not just parts of the U.S. that have endured an extraordinarily hot July. Looking globally, the World Meteorological Organization said Thursday that July is on track to become the hottest month ever recorded.
In addition to land temperatures setting records, water temperatures around the world are also setting records. A tour of water bodies that have set records in recent weeks includes the Gulf of Mexico, the North Atlantic, the tropical Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea.
