heat dome

[ heet dohm ]

noun

, Meteorology.

1. a weather phenomenon in which an area experiences stifling heat when a system of high pressure pushes very warm air downward and keeps it trapped as if in a bubble.

Word History and Origins

Origin of heat dome¹

First recorded in 1955–60

Example Sentences

High pressure systems in the upper atmosphere typically drive all of California’s major heat waves, creating a lid over an area as air sinks — a phenomenon sometimes referred to as a heat dome — which prevents hot air from rising, essentially trapping it.

From Los Angeles Times

"Now look at the deadly heat dome, the fires and smoke. Here in North Carolina, Asheville was seen as a climate haven because it’s up in the mountains and therefore cooler. Nowhere is safe. Nowhere. People need to accept this. People need to understand that I’m not exaggerating when I say everything is at risk. All the impacts so far are tiny compared to what’s coming. We must end the fossil fuel industry to survive."

From Salon

The high pressure system that locked Southern California in a heat dome last week has been displaced by the passage of a weak and dying cold front.

From Los Angeles Times

"We recently published an article in PNAS, for example, showing that the climate models fail to capture the mechanisms that made the 2021 Pacific Northwest 'Heat Dome' event so extreme."

From Salon

Driven by weak offshore winds and a heat dome over the southwestern United States, temperatures are forecast to rise over the course of the week before peaking Thursday and Friday.

From Los Angeles Times