Forecast of Wet Bulb Globe Temperature of 35°C or 96°F in south of Texas, U.S.
A temperature of 39°C or 102°F is forecast for a location in the south of Texas, U.S., on June 18, 2026 20 UTC. With a relative humidity of 51%, this translates into a 'feels like' temperature of 52°C or 125°F and a Wet Bulb Globe Temperature of 35°C or 96°F.
Furthermore, as illustrated by the image below, a temperature of 41°C or 105°F is forecast for a location in the south of Texas, U.S., on June 18, 2026 20 UTC. With a relative humidity of 44%, this translates into a 'feels like' temperature of 52°C or 126°F and a Wet Bulb Globe Temperature of 35°C or 96°F.
According to NOAA, the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) is an indicator of heat related stress on the human body at work (or play) in direct sunlight. It takes into account multiple atmospheric variables, including: temperature, humidity, wind speed, sun angle, and cloud cover.
By contrast, the wet bulb temperature measures the lowest temperature to which an object can cool down through the evaporation of water, primarily accounting for heat and humidity in the shade.
By contrast, the wet bulb temperature measures the lowest temperature to which an object can cool down through the evaporation of water, primarily accounting for heat and humidity in the shade.
The human body can cool itself by sweating and the stronger the wind, the more one can cool off by sweating. As temperatures and humidity levels keep rising, a threshold can be reached where the wind factor no longer matters, in the sense that wind can no longer provide cooling. This physiological limit was long described as a 35°C wet-bulb temperature. i.e. once the wet-bulb temperature reaches 35°C, one can no longer lose heat by perspiration, even in strong wind, but instead the human body will start gaining heat from the air beyond a wet-bulb temperature of 35°C.
Accordingly, a 35°C wet-bulb temperature (equivalent to 95°F at 100% humidity or 115°F at 50% humidity) was long seen as the theoretical limit, the maximum a human could endure. Many assumed that reaching such a limit would require a large increase in temperature, but a 2020 study (led by Raymond) warns that this limit could be regularly exceeded with a temperature rise of less than 2.5°C (compared to pre-industrial).
Furthermore, a 2022 study (led by Vecellio) finds that the actual limit is lower — about 31°C wet-bulb or 87°F at 100% humidity — even for young, healthy subjects. The temperature for older populations, who are more vulnerable to heat, is likely even lower. In practice the limit will typically be lower and depending on circumstances could be as low as a wet-bulb temperature of 25°C.
Conclusion
The situation is dire and unacceptably dangerous, and the precautionary principle necessitates the danger to be acknowledged, while facilitating rapid, comprehensive and effective action to reduce the damage and to improve the outlook, where needed in combination with a Climate Emergency Declaration, as described in posts such as in this 2022 post and this 2025 post, and as discussed in the Climate Plan group.
• NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) - National Weather Service
https://digital.weather.gov
• Heat Stress in the US (2025)
• Transforming Society
https://arctic-news.blogspot.com/2022/10/transforming-society.html
• Climate Plan
https://arctic-news.blogspot.com/p/climateplan.html
• Climate Emergency Declaration
https://arctic-news.blogspot.com/p/climate-emergency-declaration.html
