By Stephen Beech

Heatwaves can cause more potentially deadly polluted air, according to new research.

It is not just high temperatures that make heatwaves unsafe but also the heat-related increase in airborne pollutants , say scientists.

And they warned that prolonged periods of hot weather are especially dangerous in already hot places.

For example, more than 300 people died in Texas in 2023 from heat, according to local authorities, the most since the state began tracking such deaths in 1989.

Because heatwaves are predicted to worsen in the next few years, researchers from Texas A&M University's Atmospheric Chemistry and the Environment (CACE) team wanted to determine how extreme heat impacts atmospheric chemistry and air quality.

They designed and conducted a pilot study of a

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