Australia's Perth Still Locked in Dry Spell, Sizzling Heat; Darker Arctic May Speed Up Global Warming

Australia's Perth is expected to experience more days and nights of scorching heat as the second longest dry spell continues. Weather reports predict temperatures as high as 37C will be reached in Perth.

The Australian city is already feeling the heat as the dry spell drags and expected to peak again on Feb 23, Sunday. Records in Perth revealed that the city had only 0.2mm of rainfall. The current dry spell in Perth reached another new record as Feb 19 marked the third-longest stretch with 0.2mm or less since rainfall records started in 1876. Australia's Bureau of Meteorology has no rain forecast for Perth next week.

Extreme heat levels expected in 2030 are already being experienced in Australia's capital cities of Adelaide, Canberra and Melbourne. According to the report "Heatwaves, Hotter, Longer, More Often," the number of days with above 35 degrees Celsius temperatures have already reached levels previously predicted for 2030. Australians living in these cities get to experience what the normal temperatures will be like in 2030.

The revelations came after the Climate Council released a report calling for more significant steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to limit the frequency of extreme heat waves.

Adelaide became the hottest city in the world in January with a temperature of 46C due to Australia's record-breaking heat wave. According to a report by the Climate Council, heat waves in the country will become hotter, longer and more frequent in time.

Darker Arctic speeding up global warming

Meanwhile, scientists have observed that the Arctic is no longer as white and bright like before since more ice has melted into the ocean. A new study revealed less of the sun's heat will reflect into space because of the Arctic's dark and open water in the summer.

According to the latest study published in the National Academy of Sciences, the Earth may be absorbing more heat than expected which contributes to global warming. Lead researcher and climate scientists Ian Eisenman from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in California said the Arctic had grown darker by 8 per cent between 1979 and 2011.