China’s western Xinjiang province records 80-degree Celsius surface temperature VIDEO

China’s western Xinjiang province records 80-degree Celsius surface temperature VIDEO

That is causing problems for countries around the world and prompting them to urgently address climate change, which scientists say will make heat waves more frequent, more severe and more deadly, according to Reuters.

A giant thermometer in the Chinese province of Xinjiang measured the ground temperature at 80 degrees Celsius, the death toll from heavy rains in South Korea reached 44 today, and forest fires are burning for the third day west of the Greek capital Athens, reports Reuters.

At the same time, the Big Island in Hawaii is preparing for the impact of Tropical Storm Calvin, which is expected to bring as much as 20.3 cm of rain and strong winds, according to the US National Weather Service (NWS). The World Meteorological Organization warned on Tuesday of the increased risk of fatalities due to high temperatures.

In South Korea, torrential rains have been hitting the central and southern regions since last week. Fourteen people died in an underpass in the central city of Cheongju, where more than a dozen vehicles were flooded on Saturday when a river embankment collapsed.

In the southeastern province of North Gyeongsang, 22 people died, most of them due to landslides and floods. Curious tourists in western China's Xinjiang province, equipped with hats and wide-brimmed umbrellas, braved high temperatures to take selfies with a giant thermometer that showed real-time surface temperatures of 80 degrees Celsius, state television showed.

On Sunday, the remote depression town of Turpan registered a maximum air temperature of 52.2 degrees Celsius, breaking China's record of 50.3 degrees set in 2015, also in this basin.

Beijing recorded its 27th day with temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, setting a new local record for the most high temperature days in a year.

The heat killed 425 people in the Phoenix-area's Maricopa County last year, so the Salvation Army mobile unit distributes urgently needed cold water, hats, sunscreen and hygiene kits to those in need. The previous record for the Chinese capital was 26 days, set in 2000.

In contrast to the extreme heat, heavy rain, thunderstorms and hail are expected to affect other parts of China in the next 18 hours, the country's National Meteorological Center said.