Danger Season continued with wildfires in the Western U.S., including blazes in Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico at the beginning of July. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that ‟several factors are driving the fire outbreak: a low-snow year that dried out the land, dry lightning that sparked blazes, low humidity, and powerful winds.” An op-ed in The Washington Post notes that ‟more than 2.5 million acres have burned nationwide this year — nearly double the 10-year average for this point in the calendar — with the most dangerous months still ahead.” The Washington Post describes forecasts for a heat dome over the intermountain West in mid-July, exacerbating fire danger as it is projected to be hotter in Billings, Montana, than in Phoenix. The Guardian reports that thousands have fled their homes as fires threaten communities across southern Europe.

As a heat dome settled over the Midwest and Eastern U.S., calls for electricity conservation were issued by utilities, mayors and other community leaders. These calls were made to prevent air-conditioning load from causing grid problems. Inside Climate News describes how Republican politicians immediately responded by calling these requests ‟socialism.” One such statement came from Nikki Haley, despite the fact that she issued a similar request for electricity conservation when she was governor of South Carolina. Vivek Ramaswamy, Republican candidate for governor in Ohio, stated: ‟the right answer isn’t restrictions or mandates. It’s drilling, fracking, coal, & nuclear.”

Ramaswamy’s disconnect from reality is readily apparent on the world’s thermometers, as ocean temperatures are higher than we have ever seen. Scientific American reports that ‟the world’s average ocean temperature shattered records in June,” and this means even more air-temperature records are likely to fall in the coming months. Western Europe recorded its hottest June ever, according to The New York Times.

The Washington Post states that the Pacific Ocean is ‟running a fever,” and explores the broad implications of this — from extreme weather to higher sea levels. On cue, the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the strongest storm to strike land anywhere on Earth this year, super typhoon Bavi, made landfall with sustained winds of 180 mph. Grist describes the damage on Rota in the Mariana Islands (at 180 mph, large household appliances can become airborne). This is the second super typhoon of this young season, and more could be on the way due to the record warm ocean. Reuters documents intense flooding in China.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that NOAA has increased the chances of a very strong El Niño by the end of the year to 81%, significantly higher than the June estimate of 63%. There is a vast reservoir of warm water in the Pacific, including at depths of 1,000 feet, and this will likely extend the duration of the event. Climate scientist Zeke Hausfather blogs about the potential strength of this El Niño based on the latest modeling results. He notes: ‟With the July runs now in from 667 ensemble members across 14 different seasonal forecast models, it looks like this year’s El Niño is not only very likely to be the strongest event since reliable records began — it may end up the strongest by a truly mind-blowing margin.”

Grist describes the possible impacts of the growing El Niño, which could become the largest of this century. ‟It is expected to drive extreme weather events around the world, including both severe droughts and heavy rainfall, likely leading to major disruptions in agricultural production and food security.” Agricultural productivity is already being adversely affected by the fertilizer shortage triggered by the closing of the Strait of Hormuz.

The New York Times notes that there is significant debate in the scientific community about whether climate change is contributing to the severity of the El Niño. This is because there are an enormous number of factors that can influence the strength of an El Niño, and it is difficult to separate the impacts of climate change on each one (NOAA previously described the strength of El Niño as being controlled by a hundred dimmer switches). A strong argument for the impact of climate change is the fact that we are in the midst of a relatively long run of strong El Niños, a situation that modelers suggest is highly unlikely without climate change. However, other scientists question the accuracy of much of the historical information used for that assessment, and an El Niño advisory issued by the World Meteorological Organization stated that there is ‟no evidence that climate change increases the frequency or intensity of El Niño events.”

Canary Media notes that state and local action in Ohio over the last decade has prevented the development of more than 5.3 gigawatts of solar and wind projects, with the Ohio Supreme Court just blocking a permit for what would be the state’s largest solar installation. Ohio is now also among the states with the most restrictions on wind power. This renewable energy could have helped the state keep electricity prices lower for consumers.

The New York Times reports that the Department of Defense has now gotten into the business of interfering with wind-power development by stopping all reviews of proposed projects. Until recently, these reviews for radar and flightpath interference were considered routine and often completed within months. ‟At least 106 planned wind projects in 21 states have been stalled indefinitely, representing an estimated $47 billion in potential investment.” This has prompted yet another lawsuit by the wind industry against the Trump Administration.

The Guardian reports on a new study which concludes that people need to start leaving New Orleans now, as it will be surrounded by the Gulf of Mexico within decades due to sea level rise and the erosion of wetlands in southern Louisiana. The lead author of a new study notes that New Orleans is basically a patient with a terminal diagnosis. ‟There is an opportunity for palliative care, we can transition people and the economy. We can get ahead of this.” While politicians are acknowledging this behind closed doors, they are not acknowledging the diagnosis in public.

The Washington Post visits Buxton, North Carolina, where the erosion of barrier islands has resulted in the loss of many homes. As with New Orleans, scientists are encouraging communities to recognize that, as the seas rise and storm intensity increases, barrier islands are not realistic places to reside in the long term. The article tells the story of one couple, who have invested a quarter million dollars to move their home to a more inland lot. Video from Orange County in California captures coastal erosion as waves during a king tide undermine lifeguard towers on beaches.

Inside Climate News visits Tangier Island in Chesapeake Bay, which is slowly disappearing due to sea level rise and land subsidence. If this name rings a bell, it may be because the mayor of Tangier Island questioned Al Gore during a 2017 CNN town hall about climate change. At that time, the mayor was convinced that Gore’s contention regarding rising sea level and the future of Tangier Island was incorrect. The intervening years have changed his opinion, although he evidently still cannot accept the connection between fossil-fuel burning and sea level rise.

Carbon Brief reports on a recent analysis indicating that solar is now generating more electricity than natural gas in Asia. China’s domestic production accounts for about 75% of this growth, and is enabling solar deployment in other Asian countries through exports of cheap solar panels. ‟Amid the energy crisis sparked by the Iran war, Chinese solar exports to Asia doubled to reach a record 39 gigawatts (GW) in March 2026.” Liquified natural gas (LNG) supply disruptions due to the Ukraine war led to the cancellation of 81 GW of planned gas capacity in Asia in 2022 and 2023, and global gas-turbine shortages have also delayed plans to build new gas-power plants in Vietnam and the Philippines. ‟Coal and hydropower remain Asia’s largest sources of electricity, generating roughly 52% and 12% of the continent’s power each year, respectively.”

Yale e360 describes how countries in Africa are quickly turning to renewable energy to power their economic growth. ‟In 2025, African countries added a combined 11.3 gigawatts of renewable capacity, up from just 4.2 gigawatts in 2024.” Of the 322 energy projects announced across Africa last year, 78% were renewable energy and only 7% were natural gas. PV Magazine notes that such statistics mask the scale of the solar boom in Africa, which is taking place not in state-planned projects but rather ‟on thousands of homes and businesses across the continent: on factory roofs, at shopping centers, hotels, cell towers, farms, and in residential complexes.” This is because, unlike in the U.S. and Europe, solar in Africa is competing with electrical generators that burn gasoline or diesel. The frequency of power outages on African grids has led to a large array of generators at businesses and organizations that need constant power, and these businesses are finding that the payback for solar-battery systems (vs. fuel-based ones) is just a few years. This is why 85% of solar systems are in the commercial/industrial sector, with private residences playing a minor role.

The New York Times describes the growing popularity of ‟balcony” or ‟garden” solar — small solar systems that can be purchased from IKEA or other retailers and plug into a wall socket to delivery electricity. The output of these systems is typically less than what’s needed for home use, but substantive for those who rent, and can significantly reduce one’s electric bill.

The New York Times profiles former Republican Senator from Tennessee, Dr. Bill Frist, who has become an outspoken advocate for understanding the links between human and environmental health. He now regrets some of his votes in Congress (including trying to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling), and is encouraging his party to recognize the reality of climate change. He even has an office down the hall from Al Gore. While such transitions are welcome, the damage done to human civilization by his collaboration with the fossil-fuel industry when he was in power cannot be swept under the rug.

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