Climate change belief rises with heat

The record-setting heat wave baking the nation has apparently convinced many Americans climate change is real, a poll finds.

The nationwide poll, conducted by the University of Texas from July 12 to 16, found 70 percent of Americans believe the planet is warming, compared to 65 percent in March, according to Bloomberg Businessweek. The rise in belief was particularly dramatic among independent voters and citizens in southern states like Texas, which is suffering its second year of record drought.

Following 2010’s winter of record snowfall, a study published by the Brookings Institution in Washington found belief in climate change dropped to 52 percent.

“There has been a rebound in [climate-change] belief,” said Barry Rabe of the University of Michigan. “All respondents are quite likely to use observations of weather as a big part of their explanation.”