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Heather’s Weather Whys: Hot cars in the summer

On a day like this, a parked car can get dangerously hot in a matter of minutes. Learn about the factors that play into that in this week’s Heather’s Weather Whys.
Credit: WGRZ

Today was a hot one with temperatures soaring into the upper 80s with strong sunshine. On a day like this, the air inside a vehicle sitting for even just a few minutes can reach dangerous temperatures which are much higher than the outside air temperature.

The outside air temperature on a hot day like that has a lot to do with it, but sunlight may be more important. But don’t think you can avoid the hot car dangers by simply parking in the shade.

Temperatures in any vehicle on a 90-degree afternoon can easily reach the triple digits. What may be most concerning is that the fastest warming inside the car happens within the first 15 minutes.

Watch this week’s Heather’s Weather Whys for a look at the science behind the rapid heating.

New episodes of Heather’s weather Whys are posted to the WGRZ YouTube channel every Wednesday evening. Subscribe to the channel to see every episode plus lots of other great web-only content from Channel 2! 

If you have a weather question for Heather to answer, send it to her on Facebook or Twitter.

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