A study published in Nature shows that around one-quarter of the heatwaves recorded in the period 2000–23 can be directly linked to greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions from individual energy companies. It says that more than one-quarter of the 213 events recorded would have been “virtually impossible” without human-induced global warming.

The emissions linked to energy companies and other major carbon emitters increased the likelihood of some 53 heatwaves by a factor of more than 10,000.

The researchers assessed the historical GHG emissions from 180 ‘carbon majors’. They also calculated the emissions from the production of cement and coal. Together, these entities account for nearly 57% of historical emissions around the globe, according to the study.

The team used climate models to analyse global temperature trends. It then assessed the probable impact of human-induced global warming on heatwaves recorded around the planet and attributed these to the GHG emissions tied to each of the carbon majors.