An extreme heatwave is affecting many European countries: it is a consequence of the climate crisis. And it is only expected to get worse.
Almeno 94 milioni di persone in Europa stanno patendo un’ondata di caldo estrema per precocità e per durata, con un epicentro concentrato in particolare su Spagna e Francia. Estrema, ma non straordinaria, né tanto meno eccezionale. Non c’è infatti nulla di “extra-ordinario” in quello a cui stiamo assistendo: è esattamente ciò che la scienza climatica spiega ormai da decenni. E andrà sempre peggio, perché il principale “motore” del riscaldamento globale – la combustione di carbone, petrolio e gas – continua ad essere alimentato nonostante gli appelli dei climatologi e gli impegni assunti dalla comunità internazionale, a partire dall’Accordo di Parigi.
At least 94 million people across Europe are experiencing a heatwave that is extreme because of both its early arrival and its duration, with its epicentre concentrated particularly over Spain and France. Extreme, but not unusual, let alone exceptional. There is in fact nothing “extraordinary” about what we are witnessing: it is exactly what climate science has been explaining for decades. And it will only get worse, because the main driver of global warming—the burning of coal, oil and gas—continues unabated despite repeated warnings from climate scientists and the commitments made by the international community, beginning with the Paris Agreement.
From a meteorological perspective, a vast mass of hot air originating from Africa has settled over Western Europe for several days. Its compression under a high-pressure system is further increasing temperatures at ground level. But this is simply a description of the current weather situation.
The long-term picture shows that Europe is a climate change hotspot—one of the world’s macro-regions where global warming is manifesting itself most intensely. Temperatures across the continent are rising twice as fast as the global average, according to the latest edition of the European State of the Climate report, produced by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (Ecmwf).
It is therefore inevitable that heatwaves—along with other extreme events such as storms, floods and droughts—will become more frequent and more severe in the years ahead. Anyone who still insists on denying the existence of climate change should, in this regard, surrender to the evidence.
The current situation is telling. In France, living conditions have become unbearable in recent days: 72 departments (out of the 95 located in mainland France) have been placed under red alert. At least 40 people have drowned while trying to cool off in unsafe bodies of water. As many as 13,500 schools have either closed or changed their opening hours to protect the health of students and teachers.
D’altra parte, il 24 giugno è stata, sommando i valori medi diurni e notturni, la giornata più calda mai registrata sul suolo francese da quando le temperature vengono monitorate con regolarità: la media è stata superiore ai 30 gradi centigradi. Superiore a quella registrata durante le ondate di caldo del 2019 e del 2003. A Cazaux, nella Gironde, si sono toccati i 43,6 gradi di massima, a Nantes 42,2. A Quimper, cittadina situata nel Finistère, dipartimento che si allunga nell’oceano Atlantico, la colonnina di mercurio ha toccato i 38,7 gradi. A Parigi si è arrivati a 38,7: un valore raggiunto per la quarta volta in 150 anni.
On 24 June, when daytime and nighttime average temperatures are combined, France experienced the hottest day ever recorded since systematic observations began: the national average exceeded 30°C. This was higher than during the heatwaves of 2019 and 2003. Temperatures reached 43.6°C in Cazaux, in the Gironde department, and 42.2°C in Nantes. In Quimper, a town in Finistère on the Atlantic coast, the mercury climbed to 38.7°C. Paris also reached 38.7°C, only the fourth time in 150 years that such a value has been recorded.
In Italy, where schools have already closed for the summer holidays, 17 cities have been placed under red alert: Ancona, Bologna, Bolzano, Brescia, Florence, Frosinone, Milan, Perugia, Pescara, Rieti, Rome, Turin, Venice, Verona, Viterbo, Latina and Bari. The highest temperatures are expected in Florence, with the peak forecast for Monday 29 June.
Red alerts have also been issued across several regions of the United Kingdom from today. It is only the second time this has happened since 2021. In Gosport, Hampshire, on England’s southern coast, a new June temperature record of 36.1°C was set. In Spain, Monday and Tuesday were the hottest days in the country’s recorded history, with 24-hour average temperatures of 28.08°C and 28.17°C, respectively.
In the Netherlands, the City of Amsterdam has announced free access to public swimming pools. Several cultural venues and landmarks have also changed their opening hours, including the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower in Paris, as well as the Atomium in Brussels. In Poland, extreme heat is expected to arrive from Thursday 25 June. The hot air mass will then spread to Denmark, Austria, Croatia and Hungary.
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