Staff Writer
Spain is expected to experience Europe’s next heat wave early next week, with temperatures returning to 40C (104F) by Sunday in the southwest of the nation.
According to Maxar Technologies Inc., the temperature in Madrid, the country’s capital, will likewise reach that level by Wednesday, 5C over the seasonal normal and 11.5C above today’s high. Spain’s Catalonia set a temperature record last month.
This summer’s heat waves have scorched the Northern Hemisphere, setting the stage for July to be the world’s hottest month ever after a record-breaking June. Parts of the Mediterranean are expected to retest all-time highs in the second half of August after experiencing some relief in the first week of the month.
Climate change brought on by fossil fuel emissions is causing extreme weather, including flooding in India and the US and wildfires in Canada and Greece. That puts a burden on the energy and transportation infrastructures, endangering the lives and health of millions of people.
Over the weekend, temperatures in northern Europe, including France, Germany, and the Alps, will remain below average. Poland has issued a warning that thunderstorms are expected to bring torrential rain and winds of up to 75 km/h (47 mph). Cyclone Circe is expected to bring up to 70mm of rain and hail to sections of the north and center of the country, as well as Sicily. Italy is preparing for this storm.
Maxar predicts that lows of 10.5C will be reported in London during the following few days until temperatures in the UK return to the seasonal average next week.
The most recent volcanic eruption in Iceland, which also produced methane clouds, has contributed to Europe’s peculiar weather over the previous two weeks.
