Europe is on alert and preparing for extreme heat

Europe is warming twice as much than the world average, and is preparing to the hottest summer of all time. What are the forecasts? weather forecasters promise.

The mercury has risen to all-time highs. Extreme heat has hit Europe, with Greece, Cyprus, Turkey and Italy recording temperatures 10 degrees above the seasonal average.

The weather is changing all over the world.

Risk of heat waves Olympic Games in Paris makes organizers worry about the safety of athletes. Spain is preparing for another hot summer, releasing a new map for more accurate weather forecasting. Cities across the continent are on alert for extreme heat-related situations.

European cities are on alert and preparing for extreme heat.

This year marks the 11th straight month of record temperatures, and sea surface temperatures in the North Atlantic have reached their highest levels in 40 years.

Weather in Europe

Looking for a breath of fresh air in Spain

Weather: warning signs
Meteorologists have long been ringing bells warning that the continent could face another unusually hot summer – perhaps the hottest on record. Currently, June, July and August are looking to be above average temperatures.

When it comes to heat waves or individual extreme weather events, no one can know exactly what will happen in advance. However, by recording weather data, meteorologists can provide some clues. Weather conditions vary across the continent, so it is difficult to predict where it might occur. “Hot Summer”says (Euronews) Tamsin Green, meteorologist at Weather & Radar.

Western Europe will see normal rainfall in June, above normal in July in southern Europe and much drier in the east. August is likely to be drier across much of the continent, according to meteorologist Green.

Paris will host the Olympic Games, and weather conditions will be a “headache”

What affects the weather in Europe

The changeable weather in Europe is influenced by many different factors. For example, the world is now in a transition phase between the climate phenomena El Niño and La Niña, which are “crucial” in determining global weather patterns and temperatures. We are forecast to remain in this neutral phase until at least early summer, but the influence of El Niño continues. “In recent months, air and ocean temperatures have continued to remain astronomically high,” – says Green.

The weather can act like “Domino effect” and influence conditions on the other side of the planet. If somewhere in the world there is more rainfall, then in other places the amount decreases. For example, weakened tropical storms often come to Europe, bringing rain and winds. Atlantic storm activity is likely to increase during the June to November hurricane season as La Niña forms in the Pacific Ocean, reducing storm activity there.

Shady alleys are valuable for a little coolness

Europe is warming faster than the global average

However, one factor playing a major role in Europe's increasingly hot summers is man-made climate change. “The undeniable factor that cannot be ignored is that we are constantly breaking heat records,” says Green. – The past ten years have been the warmest on record, and most of the Earth's warming has occurred in the last 40 years. April 2024 was the 11th warmest month on record.”

According to the latest data from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the climate agency EU Copernicus (C3S), Europe has warmed at twice the global average since 1991. The old continent is not “exception” of the impacts of climate change, and warnings about the need for further emissions reductions and decarbonization continue. Notably, 23 of the continent's 30 most severe heat waves have occurred since 2000, and five of them in the past three years.

The latest five-year average shows temperatures in Europe are now 2.3C above pre-industrial levels, compared with 1.3C globally. In this regard, Green, “with a certain degree of confidence” believes 2024 is likely to be another record year. “Despite how the forecasts are shaping up, the global warming trends are undeniable,” – he says.

Hot day in Italy

We are experiencing what may be the warmest June on record

In Athens, temperatures recorded daily in the center in June are above normal for the season. This conclusion was reached by the director of research at the National Observatory of Athens and the head of the meteorological department, Kostas Lagovardos, by observing the values ​​​​that were recorded daily in the center of the capital at 12 o'clock at night. These are temperatures above the average maximum for an entire day in June, he said.

Beaches are a refuge from the heat

According to the entries:

1) with the exception of June 1, maximum values ​​in Gazi exceeded 30.5°C on all days until June 19.

2) for 8 days the maximum temperature was 5 degrees or more above normal, even reaching 40.7°C on June 13.

“Unfortunately, no significant changes are expected in the coming days, we will have one of the hottest Junes in our meteorological history (both in Athens and throughout most of the country),” – says Kostas Lagovardos.

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