Is AI heating Earth? Scientists find data centers creating heat islands, raising temp by 9 degrees Celsius
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Is AI heating Earth? Scientists find data centers creating heat islands, raising temp by 9 degrees Celsius")
Representative image. Photograph: (Freepik)
Scientists found that once a data centre becomes operational, nearby surface temperatures increase by about 2 degrees Celsius on average, with spikes reaching up to 2 degrees Celsius in extreme cases.
A new study has revealed that the giant buildings that run AI, called data centres, are physically heating up the surrounding land, which is affecting more than 340 million people worldwide. As we know, AI uses an ample amount of electricity and also consumes gallons of water.
Researchers at the University of Cambridge analysed two decades of temperature data from remote sensors and compared it with the locations of major AI data centres, large facilities spanning over 93,000 square metres and housing thousands of servers.
They found that once a data centre becomes operational, nearby surface temperatures increase by about 2 degrees Celsius on average, with spikes reaching up to 2 degrees Celsius in extreme cases. It is nearly the difference between a pleasant Delhi winter morning and a searing May afternoon.
Heat islands
These heat bubbles, also labelled as "heat islands," aren't confined to the area right outside the facility's fence. It was discovered that temperatures were rising up to 10 kilometres away from a data centre, approximately from Connaught Place to Noida's Sector 18. Andrea Marinoni, the lead researcher, told CNN that the planned expansion of data centres "could have dramatic impacts on society" related to the environment, people's welfare, and the economy.
This trend is visible worldwide, from Mexico’s Bajio region to Spain’s Aragon, both major data centre hubs, where unexplained temperature increases of around 2 degrees Celsius have been recorded, unlike in nearby areas. The “heat island” effect refers to urban zones becoming significantly warmer than surrounding rural regions due to heat absorption by buildings and roads, along with limited vegetation for natural cooling.
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Highly populated areas with dense infrastructure also trap heat coming out from vehicles, air conditioners, and industrial activity. Cities can run several degrees warmer than nearby countryside, which creates a literal "island" of heat in the urban areas.
As India expands data centres in cities like Mumbai, Chennai, and Hyderabad, the resulting heat impact could become a serious concern, especially amid already extreme summer temperatures. "The rush for AI-gold appears to be overriding good practice and systemic thinking, and is developing far more rapidly than any broader, more sustainable systems," sustainability expert Deborah Andrews told CNN News.
