May 3, 2024

Europe’s Sizzling Summer: A Heatwave Like Never Before

This image uses information from the Copernicus Sentinel-3 missions radiometer instrument and reveals the land surface area temperature throughout Europe and parts of northern Africa on the morning of July 10, 2023. Land surface temperatures struck 46 ° C in Rome, Italy, while Madrid and Seville reached 46 and 47 ° C, respectively. Credit: Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2023 ), processed by ESA
An intense, prolonged heatwave is sweeping across Europe, with potential record-breaking temperatures of up to 48 ° C( 118.4 ° F). This follows worldwide temperature records and accompanies the beginning of El Niño. In 2015s heatwaves triggered over 60,000 deaths in Europe, and this summer seasons conditions could be much more severe.
Temperature levels are skyrocketing across Europe today due to an extreme, prolonged heatwave. Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and Poland are all experiencing this significant heatwave, with temperature levels anticipated to reach a scorching 48 ° C( 118.4 ° F) on the islands of Sicily and Sardinia– possibly setting a new European record.
An anticyclone, an area of high air pressure, called “Cerberus” (called after the beast from Dantes Inferno) coming from the south is anticipated to press temperatures over 40 ° C( 104 ° F) across a considerable portion of Italy. This high heat follows a spring and early summer rife with floods and storms.

The listed below animation utilizes information from the Copernicus Sentinel-3 objectives radiometer instrument and illustrates land surface area temperatures throughout Italy between July 9 and 10. On the slopes of Mount Etna, in Sicily, as well as in the region of Puglia, surface temperature levels surpassed 47 ° C.It is worth noting the distinction in between air temperature and land-surface temperature. Land-surface temperature rather is a procedure of how hot the real surface area would feel to the touch.Credit: Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2023 ), processed by ESA
These extreme temperatures in Europe mirror the record-breaking worldwide temperature levels reported previously this week by the World Meteorological Organization. These came after the most popular June on record, marked by unmatched sea surface area temperatures and a record low in Antarctic sea ice degree.

The greatest temperature level ever taped in Europe was 48.8 ° C( 119.84 ° F), tape-recorded on August 11, 2021, in Floridia, a town in Sicilys Syracuse province. That record may be gone beyond in the forthcoming days.
The below animation uses information from the Copernicus Sentinel-3 objectives radiometer instrument and shows land surface temperature levels throughout Italy in between July 9 and 10. As the image clearly exposes, the land surface area in cities like Rome, Naples, Taranto, and Foggia went beyond 45 ° C( 113 ° F). On the eastern slopes of Mount Etna in Sicily, temperature levels above 50 ° C( 122 ° F) were taped.
This animation was created using information from the Copernicus Sentinel-3 missions radiometer instrument and shows the land-surface temperature level throughout Italy on 9-10 July 2023. On the slopes of Mount Etna, in Sicily, as well as in the area of Puglia, surface area temperatures went beyond 47 ° C.It is worth noting the difference in between air temperature and land-surface temperature. Air temperature level, given in our day-to-day weather projections, is a procedure of how hot the air is above the ground. Land-surface temperature instead is a step of how hot the real surface area would feel to the touch.Credit: Contains customized Copernicus Sentinel information (2023 ), processed by ESA
Provided that the Copernicus Sentinel-3 gathered these information in the late early morning (11:30 CEST), the temperature most likely continued to increase throughout the afternoon.
This satellite instrument determines the actual energy radiating from Earth and shows the temperature of the land surface area, which is generally hotter than air temperatures. Hence, the map shows the real temperature level of the lands surface area.
Scientists use land surface temperature level information to much better comprehend and anticipate weather and climate patterns, monitor fires, enhance crop irrigation, and improve urban heat mitigation strategies.
Other areas hit difficult consist of Rome, Italy, and Madrid and Seville in Spain, with land surface temperature levels reaching 46 ° C (114.8 ° F) and 47 ° C(116.6 ° F)respectively. To correctly adjust to these modifications we need prompt details at actionable resolution which the Copernicus programme is offering with Sentinel-3 and soon with the Copernicus Land Surface Temperature Monitoring objective at 50 m resolution,” commented Benjamin Koetz, Mission Scientist of the Land Surface Temperature Monitoring mission.
These extreme temperature levels in Europe mirror the record-breaking international temperature levels reported previously this week by the World Meteorological Organization. These came after the most popular June on record, marked by unprecedented sea surface area temperature levels and a record low in Antarctic sea ice degree. The Copernicus Climate Change Service reported that June 2023 was just over 0.5 ° C (0.9 ° F) above the 1991-2020 average.
The present heat lines up with the onset of El Niño, a natural phenomenon warming the Pacific Ocean. Its anticipated that the worldwide temperature will increase further and more weather records will be broken.
A study recently published in Nature Medicine disclosed that over 60,000 people perished due to in 2015s summer season heatwaves throughout Europe, with the highest death rates in Italy, Greece, Spain, and Portugal. This summer could potentially be even worse. The Red Cross has actually called on locals and tourists to exercise extreme caution and pay attention to those most vulnerable to the high temperatures.