After several years of municipal redevelopment, the rampant spread of Dense Ice beneath Gotham had improved considerably. Most high-quality Dense Ice layers had been converted into commercial cold-storage facilities. One major characteristic of cold-storage construction materials was insulation, ensuring that all the cold air remained contained within and did not leak out. As a result, Gotham City's overall drop in temperature had eased somewhat.
Ever since Lex Luthor's Gotham Sun Project had made good progress, Gotham had been able to bask in sunlight for two hours a day on average, usually once at ten in the morning and once at three in the afternoon.
Since the method of bringing sunlight to Gotham was rather forceful—using massive amounts of energy to expand Angel's halo and temporarily sweep away the clouds gathered above the city—repeated use had pushed many clouds out toward the perimeter. The cloud cover had become much thinner and gathered much more slowly than before.
This gave Gotham at least three to four hours of direct sunlight every day. The immediate consequence was that Gotham began to have distinct seasons, just like Metropolis.
In the past, with almost no direct sunlight and rain year-round, Gotham had been cold, damp, and gloomy through every season. If it had to be compared to somewhere, its climate had been closer to that of the Scottish Highlands.
In the first summer after sunlight returned to Gotham, the city experienced a true midsummer. Peak temperatures broke a twenty-year record, and the average daily temperature finally reached the summer average for East Coast cities.
This was sheer misery for Gothamites, who were hardly any different from vampires.
The cold mist that once lingered around their hems and hair had turned into rising hot vapor. The slightest sweat made it an accomplice in plastering clothes to