"Tropical nights" and the burden on the human body

Professor of the Faculty of Physics of the University of Patras and Director of the Laboratory for the Study of Atmospheric Phenomena Andreas Kazantzidis, regarding the abnormal heat recorded in early June in Greece, emphasizes: “NWe will have to adapt to new weather data because everything indicates that we are moving towards new conditions that will become the norm in a few years“

The expert explains why certain regions of the country suffer from heat waves, such as eastern central Greece, Thessaly, eastern Peloponnese, etc.

As Andreas Kazantzidis notes: “InPerhaps we should stop talking only about high temperatures and focus on more biometeorological data, such as e.g. discomfort index. This indicator depends not only on air temperature, but also on humidity, solar radiation, the level of air pollution from African dust, how intense it is, and wind parameters (direction, strength).”

“High temperatures are not the only problem, because discomfort caused by high temperatures is also associated with other factors. There is a whole industry called biometeorology, that is, the influence of weather conditions on the human body. So perhaps we should discuss what a discomfort indicator is, that is, if it is, for example, red, green or yellow, and therefore the world should gradually begin to educate itself,” says the expert.

Andreas Kazantzidis also emphasizes that “The load on the human body is also due to the fact that high air temperatures are also recorded at night”, noting: “During the midday hours, when the temperature is high, we all try to protect ourselves somehow, but what is important is what the nighttime biometeorological indicators will be. It is important that the temperature at night drops below 25 degrees, because when it exceeds them, we are talking about the so-called tropical nights. Therefore, when we have consistently high temperatures, that is, 40°C during the day and 28-30°C at night, the load on the human body is significant.”

At the same time, he points out, “the long-term effects of heat stress are statistically linked to diseases such as heart problems and even mortality. For this reason, we will have to adapt to new conditions.”

Regarding the fact that the eastern part of the country recorded higher temperatures compared to the western part, Andreas Kazantzidis reported that “this is due to atmospheric circulation, which favors the movement of warm air masses in an easterly direction“

He also states that “in the event of heat waves, coastal areas are in a better position compared to continental and especially lowland areas, so there are, so to speak, some hot Spotswhere the temperature always rises too high, such as the areas of Boeotia, Larissa, Sparta, Argos, etc., but also further north, such as the areas of the plain of Giannitsa and Serres“

“But here's what matters,” the professor emphasizes, “ this is that meteorological forecasts and given instructions should be somewhat more focused on the regional level, and not say that the entire country is “in the heat”” And that's because, in his words, “citizens begin to think that forecasts are exaggerated when they are not confirmed in the areas where they live“.

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