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Posted on 05/27/2026 9:25:06 AM PDT by Libloather
Findings by academic researchers suggest that hyperscalers' AI data centers contribute to local warming, but not everyone agrees.
Findings of a new study conducted by a group of academics from around the globe have revealed that land surface temperature (LST) increases by 2°C (3.6°F) on average after the start of operations of an AI data center, an effect detectable up to an estimated 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) away.
The study, The data heat island effect: quantifying the impact of AI data centers in a warming world, was conducted by a dozen experts from leading universities in the UK, Singapore, France, Italy and Hong Kong who specialize in either computer science or energy and environmental issues.
In it, they wrote, “taking advantage of land surface temperature measurements acquired by remote sensing platforms over the last decades, we are able to obtain a robust assessment of the temperature increase recorded in the areas surrounding AI data centres globally.”
Through the use of what they described as a “plethora of remotely sensed temperature measurements,” report authors estimated that the land surface temperature increases by 2°C on average after an AI data centre commences operation, inducing “local microclimate zones, which we call the data heat island effect.”
They noted, “with global data volumes growing rapidly, data centers are expected to be one of the most power-hungry [venues] in the next decade. In fact, it has been estimated that in three to five years, the power consumption for data processing will exceed the amount budgeted for manufacturing. As such, it is possible to expect that the impact of data centers and AI hyperscalers’ activities on climate might not be negligible, indeed being further exacerbated by the use of AI in the next decades.”
The findings, they stated, are based on a multiscale multimodal analysis...
(Excerpt) Read more at networkworld.com ...
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Here in Northern Virginia, the data center capital of the world for at least the last decade, the temperature rises and electric and water shortages and costs have definitely been noticeable and unbearable...not really.
That’s funny. I worked in a data center in Phoenix, AZ for three years. It’s the coolest place around!
Since virtually all the electricity that is produced is eventually dissipated as heat, data centers can only contribute to warming to the extent that they cause ADDITIONAL electricity to be produced.
Same effect as electric cars, scooters, and all the other “green” toys.
Decades ago when in college, I was on a research project to prove “Acid Rain” from coal plants was real.
The data proved it wasn’t real and the research quietly was dropped.
Still the MSM kept reporting that it was real.
where were these con artists when the earth warmed enough to melt MILES THICK ice sheets that covered the eastern US?
Climates change- all without any help from mankind- We can’t produce enough warmth to make an iota of difference globally!
The planet was so warm 14,000 to 20,000 years ago that ocean and sea levels were VERY VERY low.
Native Americans most likely walked to North America from Asia via the Beringia land bridge connecting Siberia to Alaska.
Global warming doesn’t require people!
Anybody owning a laptop has felt a warmth arising from one section of their machine.
Why do home computers have fans in the
Used to be to keep cool the internal power converter.
Then towers became the norm.
Ok heat rises. Install more fans.
Then came banks of processors, rows of input output switching circuits, huge boxes of nothing but data storage circuitry, all of which get very warm in their programming.
OF COURSE IT ALL GETS WARM!
I saw a video of a house near a data center, and the sky looked like daylight even in the middle of the night.
my electric rates going up 17% because of the data centers
They’re trying to erect one in my county. I’m against it for purely economic reasons. The loonie bin “legislators” in Maryland have shut down most electrical generation plants, relying on purchasing from other states and telling us to conserve, yet they want to give almost unlimited power to the data centers. Supply and demand dictates that you can’t do both.
Plus it’s going to be virtually next door to a friend of mine. It will severely damage his home value. It’s cost him twice.
It’s also not very close to a significant water supply, ie: river. If they drill wells, it may affect the aquifer.
It seems like these data centers should be built in abandoned caves/mines. Where the temperature stays 55 degrees year round 24/7.
Just my two cents.
Then they would not need as much electricity to cool.
They could be geothermal
In Virginia and WV, DCs are taking advantage of the law that makes ALL electric customers pay for electric infrastructure improvements. The regional economic benefits here from them still outweigh those costs, as unfair as they may be. The Va General Assembly is to blame.
I don’t understand why no AI has been tasked with designing a more efficient and less energy using Data Center.
In 2027, that is supposed to change in Va and place more of the burden on data centers with more coming later with even higher electric rates on them.
“The data proved it wasn’t real and the research quietly was dropped.”
How do you account for the acidic samples? Some lower than 3.0?
Was that sarcasm?
More proof that the left has adopted AI and data centers as the new existential threat now that the global warming hoax has collapsed. Coincidentally Red China is the biggest beneficiary of both hoaxes.
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