A local meteorologist has claimed that 40 is the new 30 when it comes to summer temperatures measured in degrees Celsius. Belinda Sauntner made the observation after combining her own years of anecdotal evidence with the hard facts about climate change that she analyses every day in her work.
While the phrase is traditionally used by delusional 40 year olds attempting to retain some semblance of youth and vitality, Sauntner suggests that the phrase could now be used by people who accept the reality of climate change but don’t want to be super negative about it. She said, “Think about it. Growing up in the 80s and 90s, if the temp hit 40 or above it was a once-a-year occurrence. An anomaly. By now it happens about once a fortnight during a Melbourne summer.”
Sauntner supported her scientific data with the general malaise of the Melbourne population. She said, “You know you’ve got a problem when people start saying ‘it’s only gonna be 34 today, so that’s not too bad’. I mean, seriously, 34 used to be the heatwave. But now it’s the cool change.”
The Watsonia Bugle 