Study Finds Dangerous Nighttime Heat Rising in 83% of African Cities

RIO DE JANEIRO – A study conducted by the Climate Resilience for All experts has found a rapid rise of dangerous weather conditions in 100 global cities; 13 of these cities are predominantly located on the African continent.

The study was released during the COP30 Local Leaders Forum – a critical gathering of global mayors focused on climate action – with a sweeping new scientific analysis, affirming the dangerous summer weather conditions across 100 major global cities.

According to the CRA release signed by Kelechukwu Iruoma, the study reveals that while leaders have been focusing on avoiding breaching the +1.5°C threshold of the Paris Agreement, in many global cities, minimum nighttime temperatures have been rising much more rapidly during oppressively hot weather situations than daytime average highs, up to 12 times faster in some cities.

The study by CRA, Extreme Heat and the Shrinking Diurnal Range: A Global Evaluation of Oppressive Air Mass Character and Frequency, analysed weather data over 30 years from 1994 to 2024, isolating the two types of weather conditions “air masses” considered most dangerous for human health: “dry tropical” (DT) weather, which is hot and dry, and “moist tropical” (MT) weather, which is hot and humid.

The release noted that heat exposure has traditionally been measured by exposure to daytime high temperatures and increasing “average” temperatures. “This study points clearly to the urgent need for preventative and responsive actions on extreme heat—including early warnings, public health measures, and adaptation planning—to explicitly account for and address the rapidly rising threat of hotter nights,” the release states.

This analysis is the first to examine how humidity and daytime and nighttime temperatures are changing within dangerous summer air masses, how their frequency is shifting, and how these trends vary across climate regions, making a significant contribution to the science and helping inform urban heat and health interventions for practitioners everywhere.

After the major conclusions, the summary of the analysis found that there were increases in nighttime temperatures and decreases in the gap between daytime highs and nighttime lows across much of the globe; 83% of cities in the study are experiencing sustained, higher nighttime temperatures; in Africa, 13 out of 15 cities studied are experiencing higher nighttime temperatures in moist tropical weather, and 10 out of 14 cities are experiencing higher nighttime temperatures in dry tropical weather. 

Also, it was found that nighttime temperatures in African cities are rising fastest in Agadir, Morocco (dry tropical), where they are rising at a rate of 1°C every 5.6 years, and in Cairo, Egypt (moist tropical), where they are rising 1°C every 16.8 years.

During moist tropical weather, the cities seeing decreases between daytime and nighttime temperatures are Upington, South Africa; Bamako, Mali; Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire; Cairo, Egypt; Agadir, Morocco; Mombasa, Kenya; Espargos, Cape Verde; Brazzaville, Congo; Dakar, Senegal; Algiers, Algeria; Cotonou, Benin; Luxor, Egypt; and Reunion, Reunion Island.

During dry tropical weather, the cities seeing decreases between daytime and nighttime temperatures are Agadir, Morocco; Cairo, Egypt; Luxor, Egypt; Espargos, Cape Verde; Cape Town, South Africa; Niamey, Chad; Dakar, Senegal; Mombasa, Kenya and Brazzaville, Congo; and Reunion, Reunion Island.

However, there are also cities increasing in the frequency of extreme heat days.  Over the 30-year study period, summertime moist tropical weather patterns have increased close to or over 49 per cent in Africa and have grown by 37 per cent globally. Cities in Africa average an increase of 1 moist tropical day every 2.5 years. 

Dry tropical weather patterns have grown by 14 per cent over the same period, with cities averaging an increase of 1 dry tropical day every 3.4 years. Every day’s increase in DT and MT frequency leads to a day’s decrease in the cooler, more pleasant air masses.

“Before this analysis, we did not know how rapidly nighttime heat has been rising within the most dangerous air masses,” said Larry Kalkstein, climatologist, Chief Heat Science Advisor at Climate Resilience for All, and the study’s lead author. “It is critical for us to understand how the heat of summer—that sends people to the emergency room—is shifting and what we are overlooking when we talk about it.”

Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr of Freetown, Sierra Leone, leading a city on the frontlines of extreme heat, said, “This study reflects the lived reality of so many cities in the global south. Most of our residents lack access to cooling, and women market traders facing extreme heat all day return to homes that are dangerously hot at night. As we implement our heat action plan, this study sounds the alarm on the hidden threat of nighttime temperatures and pushes us toward solutions that drive awareness and protect people.”

“We want this analysis to mobilise city and health leaders to urgently broaden their view of what is a 24-hour heat crisis. This research uncovers a critical blind spot in our understanding of extreme heat,” said Kathy Baughman McLeod, CEO of Climate Resilience for All.

High nighttime temperatures prevent the human body from cooling down, increasing risks of heat exhaustion, dehydration, and cardiovascular stress. When sleep is disrupted by heat, the body loses its ability to recover from daytime exposure, heightening the danger of illness and death—especially for older adults, women, and those living in poorly ventilated housing.

Heat warning systems are focused on high daytime temperatures and currently minimise the impact of overnight temperatures. The study offers guidance and urges health officials and policymakers to integrate these changing patterns into their work and to ramp up regionally targeted heat warning systems that account for the growing probability of multi-day, high-intensity events that offer little nocturnal relief.