By: Sana Gupta, Aarushi Jain, Arah Sanders
When we talk about climate change, the conversation is usually dominated by abstract, global metrics—like limiting global warming to 1.5°C or 2°F. But nobody lives in a "global average."
The real, human impact of a warming planet isn't just a slightly warmer afternoon; it is the drastic increase in the frequency, duration, and intensity of extreme local heat events. For a student walking to class or a family living near the University of California, San Diego, global metrics completely fail to communicate how their daily environment is actually going to change over the next few decades.
To bridge this gap, The Climate Collective is bypassing the global averages. We are tapping directly into the raw CMIP6 climate models—the exact supercomputer simulations used by global climate scientists—to extract localized, high-resolution temperature data.
The dashboard below allows you to explore the stark difference between our historical climate baseline and a projected high-emissions future. By bringing massive, complex climate datasets down to specific coordinates, we aim to transform abstract scientific statistics into a tangible, explorable reality.
Click on a city on the map or choose one from the dropdown.
Annual Days Exceeding 90°F: Historical Baseline vs. SSP585 High-Emissions Future
The interactive dashboard above allows you to travel from a historical baseline into future projections by dragging the timeline slider. The timeline pivots from recorded history to a high-emissions projection model after 2014. As time progresses, the heat radius over each selected city intensifies from lighter yellows to deeper reds, simulating escalating extreme heat exposure.
Note on Data Resolution: Because CMIP6 models use a broad spatial grid, the nearest data cell for coastal coordinates can blend with inland temperatures. While this may create a higher historical baseline for some coastal locations, the projected rate of change remains a useful indicator of escalating local extremes.
So far, our visualization focuses on SSP585, a high-emissions future. But climate outcomes are not fixed. SSP245 represents a moderate-emissions pathway where emissions are reduced more aggressively over time. Comparing SSP245 with SSP585 shows how policy and behavior choices can directly reduce future extreme heat.
Key takeaway: Moderate emissions still lead to warming, but they prevent the steepest rise in extreme heat days. The gap between SSP245 and SSP585 is the impact of climate action.
Different emissions pathways affect more than average temperature. They influence how often people experience dangerous heat, how much pressure cities face, and how urgently communities need adaptation strategies.
Call to action: Lowering emissions is not just about changing a number on a climate model. It means fewer dangerous heat days, less public health risk, and a more livable future.
This prototype establishes the core data pipeline and interactive baseline. For the final project deliverable, we are expanding this visualization across three strategic pillars to create a complete explorable explanation:
The Pivot: Average annual temperatures hide the reality of climate change. A 2°F increase sounds mild, but it masks severe localized extremes.
The Goal: We calculate "Extreme Heat Days" to show how often people experience dangerous heat, making climate change more local and human-relatable.
The Pivot: The most challenging part of our project is scaling the visualization so users can explore different regions without overwhelming the browser.
The Goal: To overcome this, we use a curated client-side approach with ten California cities, allowing users to compare local differences in projected heat exposure.
The Pivot: Explorable explanations should empower, not just doom-scroll. A worst-case scenario alone can feel discouraging.
The Goal: By comparing SSP245 and SSP585, the visualization itself becomes the call to action: changing our emissions trajectory can drastically reduce local extreme heat.