Salt Lake heat waves are getting longer

It's not a mirage. Heat waves in Salt Lake are lasting longer.

Why it matters: The weather events are becoming longer, more frequent, and more intense due to human-caused climate change .

Driving the news: Updated data from the EPA shows the upward march of heat waves in the U.S.

State of play: The Salt Lake metro area saw the third-highest heat wave duration increase among the 50 largest U.S. metro areas between 1961 and 2023.

• The length of heat waves in Salt Lake City rose to an average of nearly four days during that time period.
• Only New Orleans, Louisiana, and Fort Worth, Texas, surpassed Salt Lake City. Both metros saw an increase between 4 and 4.5 days.

How it works: The EPA tracked events of two or more consecutive days when daily, humidity-adjusted temps topped the 85th percentile of historical July-August temps between 1981-2010.

What we're watching: How longer heatwaves will impact the outlook for heatwaves this summer .