The probability of heat waves similar to heat experienced by 90 people in the two South Asian countries remains low, even at temperatures 1.2 degrees above pre-industrial, at only 1 percent per year, but only one in thirty before industrialization.
With global warming by two degrees Celsius, such an extreme heat wave should be expected every five years
The Global Weather Percentages Group, which includes about 30 researchers from Britain, India, Pakistan and other countries, said Monday night.
So-called attribution research examines whether and to what extent specific extreme weather events are related to global warming.
Global warming doubles heat waves
In India, March of this year was the hottest since records began 122 years ago, but record temperatures were also measured in Pakistan. The heat was accompanied by drought, with 60 percent less rain than usual in both countries. In April, temperatures also approached 50 degrees in northern India and Pakistan.
The researchers used computer simulations to compare weather data in the late 19th century with current data to show the impact of climate change. They concluded that without global warming, heat waves such as spring in South Asia would be extremely rare, MTI writes.
