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The Hindustan Times reports:
An unrelenting heat wave has killed more than 1,100 people across the country over a fortnight with southern neighbours Andhra Pradesh and Telangana bearing the brunt, as torrid temperatures melted roads in the national capital and have forced people indoors.
Authorities said on [May 26] most of the victims were construction workers, the elderly, or the homeless, as the weather office predicted the mercury will continue to soar this week with substantial relief expected only when the southwest monsoon hits the Indian mainland around May 31.
[...] The meteorological department issued "red box" warnings for Odisha, Jharkhand, and coastal Andhra Pradesh, signalling high chances of heatstroke, dehydration, and fatality with temperatures inching upwards of 45°C and conditions worsened by constant dry, sweltering winds.
[The state of] Odisha continued to reel, with [the town of] Titlagarh in Balangir district clocking the highest temperature of 47.6°C [117.7°F], while authorities said they received reports of 67 deaths in the past week.
[...] Experts warned [that] no let-up in the heat wave would lead to large-scale power outages in several parts of north India, bringing back memories of a horrific blackout in 2012 that affected nearly 600 million people.
In a separate story, Arne Winguth, Associate Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Texas-Arlington led a study on future environmental conditions in central Texas in the year 2100.
The professor was interviewed by KERA TV:
Winguth's study predicts more cracks and potholes, even buckling and melting of roadways in extreme 125-degree heat.
"The 125° Fahrenheit is a prediction for the future that is predicted for the year 2100. That would be the extreme temperature--that is based on most recent climate assimilation from the National Center for Atmospheric research."
[Editor's Comment: Original Submission]
(Score: 3, Informative) by martyb on Thursday May 28 2015, @01:46PM
THAT piqued my curiosity, so I read TFS and found this image that showed a melted zebra crossing: http://www.hindustantimes.com/Images/popup/2015/5/heatwave2.jpg [soylentnews.org].
That reminded me of a quote attributed to Mark Twain: [thinkexist.com]
Wit is intellect, dancing.
(Score: 2) by fritsd on Thursday May 28 2015, @01:55PM
yeah, I saw that picture too. Not sure if it's a trick photo of course.
In a related article, No respite from blistering heat wave till May 29; 500 dead and 'red box' warning issued for 3 states [hindustantimes.com] it said:
(Score: 2) by wonkey_monkey on Thursday May 28 2015, @02:55PM
Not sure how, but your link ended up linking back to the story via an odd URL.
Let's see if this works any better:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Images/popup/2015/5/heatwave2.jpg [hindustantimes.com]
systemd is Roko's Basilisk
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2015, @03:22PM
According to this page, [inchem.org] asphalt has a melting point of 54-173°C. Given that asphalt is dark and therefore can easily get way above the ambient temperature when in direct sunlight, and given that the reported ambient temperature is already close to the lower bound of the melting range, it is totally credible that the roads melted.
(Score: 2) by rts008 on Thursday May 28 2015, @03:58PM
The quote is excerpted from one of Mark Twain's published works(1897) titled: "Following the Equator", and is only one of many remarks about the unpleasant heat of summer in India.
It is an interesting read, and chock-full of the usual cutting wit and satire he was [in]famous for.
I would be surprised if it could not be found on Project Gutenberg, if anyone cares.(it may be found either as "Following the Equator", or as "More Tramps Abroad"-it's the same text)
At least I enjoyed it.(it came pre-loaded as one of the '150 free books' on my e-book reader) :-)
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Thursday May 28 2015, @05:57PM
For some reason your link came up goofy for me, so...
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Images/popup/2015/5/heatwave2.jpg [hindustantimes.com]
Now, I lived in the SoCal desert for 28 years, and I never saw any of our local pavement do that. Not the paint, not the asphalt, not even when it was 122F. Makes me wonder about the quality of roadbuilding in India.
On second thought, having seen the quality of metal goods from India, I don't wonder at all....
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2015, @07:05PM
I've lived in SoCal for a while also, some parking lots here do get hot enough to melt to the point that you can leave footprints in them. The roads don't though.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2015, @09:33PM
I'm in my my 34th year in SoCal.
Next time you pass by a bus stop in SoCal, take a close look.
There is a concrete pad poured there so that on hot days the big heavy vehicle doesn't sink up to its axles in softened asphalt while it waits for a bit.
One day in 2010, John Wayne Airport (a heat island within a larger heat island) recorded 113°F.
(Aptly named) Death Valley has repeatedly registered temperatures over 122°F, [wikipedia.org], but I haven't seen those levels reported near any city--yet.
I grew up in the southeast USA (I always assumed in the most humid part of the state).
My first "hot" day in Cali, I had this odd feeling on my forearm.
It was sweat evaporating so quickly that it gave a different sensation than I was used to.
The amount of moisture in the air definitely makes a difference in how your body deals with heat.
-- gewg_
(Score: 1) by Wierd0n3 on Thursday May 28 2015, @06:37PM
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-23315384 [bbc.com]
because the blacktop is, well, black, it absorbs heat, and can be quite a few degrees above ambient.
one of the reasons that chicago and other major cities are campaigning for light colored roofs.
http://www.energy-seal.com/UserDyn/ACS/pdfs/crrp_city_of_chicago_roofs_program.pdf [energy-seal.com]