Western Europe set a new heat record
Kyiv • UNN
Western Europe recorded its hottest June ever, with an average temperature of 20.49°C. This is 2.81°C above the 1991-2020 average, indicating increased heat stress in the region.
Western Europe officially experienced its hottest June on record. Scientists have warned that such an "exceptional heatwave" is likely to occur more frequently and be more intense due to climate change, which will exacerbate extreme heat, dryness, cold, and humidity worldwide, writes UNN with reference to the Financial Times.
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Despite the fact that the average global temperature in June was slightly lower than a year earlier, as some regions of the Southern Hemisphere experienced a colder winter, the overall increase in global temperature for the 12 months to the end of June remained at 1.55°C above pre-industrial levels.
However, according to the EU climate change service Copernicus, the average temperature in June in Western Europe reached 20.49°C, which is 2.81°C above the average for the period 1991-2020.
Also, in the western Mediterranean, the highest average daily sea surface temperature ever recorded in June was reached - 27°C. This is 3.7°C above the average, which is the highest daily anomaly on record for the month.
Samantha Burgess, strategic head of climate at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, said that much of the region is experiencing "very strong heat stress."
"With global warming, heatwaves are likely to become more frequent, more intense, and affect more people across Europe," she said.
The continent is warming the fastest, partly due to its proximity to the Arctic, where melting ice exposes a dark surface and contributes to the formation of a radiation cycle known as the albedo effect.
On June 30, the average daily air temperature in Western Europe reached 24.9°C, setting a new June record, according to Copernicus.
This is one of the highest average daily summer temperatures ever observed in the region, and it has only been exceeded a few times during heatwaves from mid-July to mid-August.
Some scientists have concluded that the world is already experiencing a long-term global warming level of 1.5°C, at which irreversible changes occur on the planet.
This indicator is measured over at least two decades, which means that recent exceedances of this threshold can be limited by a sharp reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
Richard Allan from the University of Reading stated: "Iconic, devastating heatwaves across Europe and recent severe floods in Texas and China highlight the dangerous path that a warming climate is leading us down – extreme weather events will continue to worsen until greenhouse gas emissions are sufficiently reduced to stabilize Earth's climate."
According to Copernicus, last month in many parts of Europe, the perceived temperature was at least 38°C. The "perceived" indicator takes into account factors such as wind, humidity, cloud cover, and solar radiation.
In some parts of Spain, there were up to 24 tropical nights during the month, when the temperature remained above 20°C. This is 18 more than the average for June, scientists said. Hot nights make it difficult for the body to recover from daytime heat, which increases the risk of heat-related health problems.
Overall, according to Copernicus, June was the third hottest month globally. Temperatures were above normal in the US, northern Canada, Central Asia, East Asia, and West Antarctica.
However, in India and southern South America, temperatures were below normal, and Argentina and Chile experienced record low temperatures.