It's been a HOT summer all over the northern hemisphere. The U.S. has seen droughts, severe wildfires (especially in California), and powerful storms that caused flash-flooding (like over an area of west-central Tennessee). Now, the UK Meteorological Office has come out with their assessment about a record-breaking HOT YEAR in Europe. Here's the report:
Europe experiences warmest year on record in 2020
The report showed that 2020 in Europe was 1.9 °Celsius (3.42 degrees Fahrenheit) above the long-term average of 1981-2010.
When compared with the average for the period 1981-2010, many countries reported their highest annual average temperatures (in Celsius) , including: Belgium (+1.9 °C), the Netherlands (+1.6 °C), Luxembourg (+2.1 °C), France (+1.5 °C), Spain (+1.2 °C), Switzerland (+1.5 °C), Norway (+1.9 °C), Poland (+1.9 °C), Estonia (+2.4 °C), Lithuania (+2.3 °C), Finland (+2.4 °C), Sweden (+2.0 °C), Belarus (+2.3 C°), Ukraine (+2.8 °C), European Russia (+2.9 °C) and Kazakhstan (+ 2.2°C). All five of the warmest years for annual average temperature in Europe have occurred since 2014. (TO CONVERT TO Fahrenheit Increments: https://www.convert-me.com/)
Although parts of north-west Europe were relatively cooler, 2020 also saw the UK reach its third highest annual average temperature, after 2014 and 2006.
The 31st State of the Climate report – published online by the American Meteorological Society and covering 2020 - also showed that the average surface temperature over land areas in the Arctic was the highest since the series began in 1900, 121 years ago.
2020 was the seventh year in succession where the Arctic recorded an annual average temperature more than 1.0 °C (1.8 °F) above the average for 1981-2010.
Globally, the report established that 2020 – along with 2016 and 2019 was one of the three warmest years since 1850.
The average global temperature for last year was around 0.6 °C (1.08° F) above the average for the 30-year period 1981-2010; this is despite the transition in the tropical Pacific to a La Niña state in August. The La Niña phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) – has a temporary cooling influence on global temperatures. The latest IPCC report published on 9 August 2021 states that the global surface temperature was 1.09 (0.95-1.2) °C higher in the period 2011-2020 than the pre-industrial period (1850-1900).
The Met Office’s Dr Robert Dunn is the lead editor for the global climate chapter of the report. He said: “This report adds to all the other evidence that human-induced climate change is affecting every part of the globe, but not all regions are experiencing the change at the same rate. The Arctic is continuing to warm at a faster pace than lower latitudes, but Europe’s annual average temperature is also increasing quite rapidly, with the five highest annual temperatures all occurring from 2014.”
Global rainfall
Although globally, rainfall wasn’t exceptionally high during 2020, the response of the hydrological cycle to sustained climate heating is clear, with surface humidity showing: record high values of water vapour over oceans; close-to-record values over land; and total atmospheric water vapour being well-above-average. This extra moisture compounds the effects of higher temperatures on the human body.
When looking at the saturation of the air - so called relative humidity, a different picture has been emerging. The saturation of air over land was record or near-record low, continuing a trend since around 2000. Over Europe, despite some 70 gauges showing record one-day rainfall totals, there were fewer record extremes than normal, especially over southern Europe. This went hand in hand with lower cloudiness and widespread severe to extreme drought over the region.
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