Remember the good old days when summer meant hot, cloudless days when the tan sun delightfully warmed us? Not anymore, because this year summer is predicted to give us scorching weather that will melt Europe and break temperature records. Meteorologists anticipate high temperatures that are supposed to culminate until Friday, in what the scientists call a European heatwave.
The whole territory from Spain to Poland is predicted to have temperatures of not less than 11 to 17 degrees Celsius (20-30 degrees Fahrenheit) over the usual parameters. This means that temperatures could reach at least 35 to 40 degrees Celsius (95 to 105 degrees Fahrenheit) in the mentioned areas. Big cities would be more affected because of the urban heat island effect.
Western and central mainland Europe is going to be the target of the heat wave. Temperatures in some areas of Spain and France will reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit), and the heat will persist for almost three to four days. It is expected that temperatures in significant cities, such as Madrid, Paris and many others, in these countries will break records. This is why for more than half of France was set an orange alert of heat.
Global Warming: A Heatwave Hits Europe, Increasing The Temperatures Above The Average
In northern Europe, other countries that will be affected by the wave are Germany and Denmark. Switzerland will also experience high temperatures. In these countries and others round this region, the temperatures are going to rise by 2-3 degrees Celsius (3.6-3.8 Fahrenheit) even breaking some records for this time of year. Temperatures in the UK, Ireland, and Sweden will also rise, but not by much to set heat alerts.
This hot airmass is coming from the Iberian plateau and the Sahara Desert, and along with the heatwave, it will also bring thunderstorms, intense rainfall, and damaging hail storms.
High temperatures like these can be lethal for people as we haven’t adjusted yet to the summer weather, and even in more in the perspective of global warming. The ones that will be the most affected by the weather and prone to heat-related illnesses are the elders and the homeless. The heatwave that hit Europe in 2003 had let to 70,000 fatalities. Warmer than average weather conditions are predicted to continue throughout summer in western and central Europe as the heatwave hits the continent.
Tiesha loves to share her passion for everything that’s beautiful in this world. Apart from writing on her beauty blog and running her own beauty channel on Youtube, she also enjoys traveling and photography. Tiesha covers various stories on the website.