It’s hot. That’s true in the US where at least 40 million of us are sweating through heat warnings. And it’s true in Europe where a long heat wave is getting even hotter and moving North, leaving a trail of wildfires in its wake. For those places used to heat, it’s a big concern. For those places ill-equipped for it, it can be deadly. London, for example, is not used to Sahara temperatures. Heathrow recorded the UK’s national record for the highest temperature ever registered at just over 104 degrees. Depending on where you live, that may sound pretty mild, but most homes in the UK don’t have air conditioning. “As the panic has set in, many Brits have desperately sought novel ways of keeping their homes cool. One particularly odd solution has seen homeowners covering the glass of their doors and windows with aluminum foil to stop the sunlight coming in … Other people are fashioning ‘DIY AC units’ by placing a bowl of ice cubes in front of a fan … One British movie theater chain, Showcase, is offering free tickets to redheads on Monday and Tuesday to protect their unusually sensitive skin from the blazing sun.” (Notably, it’s the first time the UK’s color-coded heat risk alert has hit the red level.) One London airport had to cancel flights because the runway buckled. Again, the temperature itself might not sound that high. But it’s not how hot it is, it’s where it’s hot. Of course, climate change plays a role. But scientists also point to other factors. So let’s start the day with humanity’s favorite (and now, most urgent) topic: the weather. From the NYT (Gift Article): Why Europe Is Becoming a Heat Wave Hot Spot. “Researchers found that many European heat waves occurred when the jet stream had temporarily split in two, leaving an area of weak winds and high pressure air between the two branches that is conducive to the buildup of extreme heat.” (Maybe this summer’s splitting jet stream is the reason so many travelers in Europe end up in one city while their luggage ends up in another…)

+ Tour de France Pours Water on Roads to Keep Pavement From Melting.

+ There are, of course, places a lot worse off than Europe. UN secretary general António Guterres put the situation into perspective. “Half of humanity is in the danger zone, from floods, droughts, extreme storms and wildfires. No nation is immune. Yet we continue to feed our fossil fuel addiction … We have a choice. Collective action or collective suicide. It is in our hands.”

+ In the US, it’s been in Joe Manchin’s hands and he (along with every GOP senator) has turned a cold shoulder to doing something about heat. In an effort to untie his own hands, WaPo reports that Biden could declare climate emergency as soon as this week. (This week a few decades ago would be better, but we’ll take any progress we can get.)

+ It turns out there are a lot of songs called Heat Wave, and many, many of the them are covers of the Glass Animal’s hit. From foggy Sausalito (which is less of a sure thing these days), here’s a playlist to cool you off.