歐洲熱浪加劇，冷氣卻不普及 Europe Gets Hotter, but Air Conditioning Is Still Rare 　　

歐洲正面臨日益頻繁的熱浪，但冷氣在許多家庭中仍不普及。

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　　Europe is facing more frequent heat waves, but air conditioning (AC) is still uncommon in many homes. While almost 90% of homes in the United States have AC, only about 20% of European homes do. One reason is that many European countries, especially in northern Europe, did not need much cooling in the past. As a result, AC was often seen as a luxury, rather than a necessity. Another reason is that many European buildings are old, which makes installing cooling systems difficult.

　  There are other challenges as well. For example, certain areas have laws that limit changes to the appearance of buildings. In addition, Europe has promised to become climate-neutral by 2050. Running more AC would increase energy use and raise outdoor temperatures, which pushes the goal out of reach. As Europe continues to warm, countries must find ways to keep homes cool without affecting their climate goals.

       歐洲正面臨日益頻繁的熱浪，但冷氣在許多家庭中仍不普及。美國近百分之九十的家庭都有安裝冷氣，而歐洲卻只有約百分之二十的家庭有。其中一個原因是許多歐洲國家 ── 尤其在北歐 ── 過去對降溫的需求並不高。因此，冷氣通常被視為一種奢侈品，而非必需品。另一個原因是許多歐洲建築老舊，這使安裝冷卻系統較為困難。

　　此外，還有其他挑戰。例如，某些地區的法律限制了建築物外觀的改變。另外，歐洲已經承諾 2050 年實現氣候中和。使用更多冷氣會增加能源使用並升高室外溫度，從而使這一目標難以實現。隨著歐洲持續變暖，各國必須尋求能在不影響氣候目標的前提下，讓家裡保持涼爽的方法。

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