Google has announced that it will soon begin sending extreme heat alerts on Google search, to help billions around the world evade heatwaves. This is a part of the US tech company’s measures to help communities adapt to the effects of global warming and climate change. These new extreme weather alerts will show up when users search for relevant terms like “heatwave” or “weather” on Google.
This warning will be tailored to your local area, which means that Google will warn you about exactly when the heatwave is predicted to begin and end in your town while recommending actions you can take to protect yourself.
These alerts will feature prominently on your search result, which means that you won’t be left confused by millions of other results that also pop up.
Hema Budaraju, senior director of product for health and social impact at Google search noted that this new feature will likely be available in the US and a few European countries in the latter half of this year.
In a press briefing, she said: “We feel a great sense of responsibility as we continue to scale this work building on this type of alert.
“Climate change is the defining challenge of our generation, which brings new and extreme weather events that many of us are learning how to adapt to.”
Meanwhile, Kate Brandt, Chief sustainability officer at the US tech giant said: “Today, we’re sharing a set of initiatives focused on helping communities prepare for and adapt to the effects of rising heat.
“This includes new extreme heat alerts on Search to keep people safe and AI-powered tools to help communities handle hotter temperatures. Plus, we’re supporting more organizations that are taking action to address extreme heat.
“To surface authoritative and helpful information in these moments, we’re rolling out new extreme heat alerts in Search in the coming months.
“To make sure the information is relevant and accurate, we’re working with the Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN).”
Arriving in the second half of this year, this alert could particularly useful in the summer, as last year, the UK faced record-breaking heatwaves in July.
From 16 to 19 July 2022, the blistering heat smashed records across multiple weather stations, marking the first time the UK reached 40 C in recorded history.
Meanwhile, scientists from the Imperial College of London warned that this was not an anomaly, as climate change made UK heatwaves more intense and at least 10 times more likely.
