HANE, India — In this tropical city, where humidity levels oscillate between muggy and oppressive for most of the year, Santosh Naykar’s only defense against the stickiness is a 14-year-old window air-conditioning unit.
“We don’t even want to think about going back to life without an air conditioner,” Naykar, 60, said as he directed the flimsy vents toward his face.
That cold air comes at a cost. Each time Naykar and his family turn on their basic window unit — which can be among the least energy-efficient air conditioners available — it guzzles electricity and spews planet-warming emissions.
But less than 20 miles away in an apartment set to re-create the balmy conditions inside households like the Naykars’, scientists are working on new AC prototypes to cool the millions of people bearing the brunt of higher temperatures without further fueling global warming.
The key, some experts say, may lie in transforming air conditioners from cooling machines into more efficient humidity gulpers. As the planet gets hotter, warmer air in the atmosphere holds more water vapor, leading to greater humidity in some places. Combined with intensifying heat, these higher humidity levels [become dangerous](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/interactive/2023/extreme-heat-wet-bulb-globe-temperature/?itid=lk_inline_manual_9): The more humid it gets, the harder it is for the human body to sweat and cool itself.
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HANE, India — In this tropical city, where humidity levels oscillate between muggy and oppressive for most of the year, Santosh Naykar’s only defense against the stickiness is a 14-year-old window air-conditioning unit.
“We don’t even want to think about going back to life without an air conditioner,” Naykar, 60, said as he directed the flimsy vents toward his face.
That cold air comes at a cost. Each time Naykar and his family turn on their basic window unit — which can be among the least energy-efficient air conditioners available — it guzzles electricity and spews planet-warming emissions.
But less than 20 miles away in an apartment set to re-create the balmy conditions inside households like the Naykars’, scientists are working on new AC prototypes to cool the millions of people bearing the brunt of higher temperatures without further fueling global warming.
The key, some experts say, may lie in transforming air conditioners from cooling machines into more efficient humidity gulpers. As the planet gets hotter, warmer air in the atmosphere holds more water vapor, leading to greater humidity in some places. Combined with intensifying heat, these higher humidity levels [become dangerous](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/interactive/2023/extreme-heat-wet-bulb-globe-temperature/?itid=lk_inline_manual_9): The more humid it gets, the harder it is for the human body to sweat and cool itself.
Read more here: [https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/interactive/2024/air-conditioning-humidity-hotter-summers-solutions/?itid=hp-top-table-main_p001_f011?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/interactive/2024/air-conditioning-humidity-hotter-summers-solutions/?itid=hp-top-table-main_p001_f011?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com)