As record-breaking heatwaves become increasingly frequent in Europe, cities across the continent are seeing more sweltering temperatures than rural areas.

It's a dangerous consequence that scientists call the "urban heat island," warming many non-rural areas at a record-breaking pace.

‌The asphalt, road traffic, buildings, and lack of canopies hold the heat in, making urban areas several degrees hotter than the countryside, which scientists say can negatively impact human health.‌

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"People who have heart problems can suffer more; they can be hospitalized and even die," said Dr. Rita Pongrácz, a geoscience researcher at Elte University in Budapest.

Pongráz has tracked the impact of the "heat island effect" for the last two decades.

"When it appears, it can be four, five or six degrees more in the city center than the surroundings," she said. 

Scientists say global warming has exacerbated the problem and warn that heatwaves could soon have more devastating effects on city-dwellers.‌

In the center of Budapest we conducted our own experiment to quantify the heat island effect by using thermal vision cameras. Whilst the air temperature was 29 degrees Celsius, the surface temperature of the black asphalt I stood on was 45 degrees Celsius - more than 50 percent hotter. A huge difference in times of sweltering heat.

Dense low-income neighborhoods with reduced vegetation cover tend to be much hotter, according to researchers, who say this disproportionately affects the most vulnerable.

Many low-income residents in Budapest, such as Otto Varga, cool down at Red Cross shelters across the city when temperatures rise. "In this shelter, we can stay out of the heat and be safe," said Varga.

"When temperatures exceed 27 degrees Celsius, authorities issue the highest heat alert; at that moment, we open all Red Cross institutions to help everyone in need," explained Péter Zsol Hovát, deputy director of the Hungarian Red Cross.

There are ways to beat the heat. Planting trees, greening streets and roofs, and building fountains can help bring down temperatures.

But much more than that is needed, with researchers insisting that European cities must adapt fast to the scorching new reality of summer.

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