The nearly week-long spell of muggy weather has become increasingly intense since Monday this week.
Every night, the French subconsciously look for ways to expel the hot air that has accumulated in their apartments during the day.
This phenomenon, when the nights remain stiflingly hot after a scorching day, even after the sun has set and the heat lingers, has a specific term: 'tropical night'. In such cases, the accumulated heat is hard to dissipate. Therefore, in the western city of Poitiers, many people choose to leave their homes and seek relief in the city's green spaces.
This is because green areas are generally more open, so naturally they don't absorb as much heat as houses do, especially stone houses. But even in the city, the air still feels oppressively hot. A mass of hot air is lingering over the entire country.
This hot air, coming from southern Europe, acts like a lid and blocks air circulation. Cool air cannot get through. As a result, nighttime temperatures are much higher than what is normal for this season.
Usually, the daytime high for this season should be between 22 and 25 degrees Celsius. Now, nighttime temperatures are in that range of 22 to 25 degrees. At night, it is difficult for the temperature to drop below this range—sometimes, it's even above 25 degrees. This is indeed very rare.
In response to more frequent high temperatures, the large-scale mitigation strategies promoted in France are fundamentally 'passive cooling measures', including: building insulation; installation of sunshades; use of fans and air circulation devices; promoting urban greening, and so on. In France, the rate of air conditioner installations is very low.
In France, air conditioning still has a poor social image, and the technology continues to carry the negative label of being 'inappropriate' in the fight against climate change.