To him warm January at least since 2010 we have this year in most parts of the country. The picture is impressive, since the deviations of the average maximum temperature for each day and for the whole month are large and cover the whole country, and this is especially pronounced in Northern Greece and Thessaly, according to National Observatory of Athens. In particular, this year’s January was the warmest since 2010 in Northern Greece, Thessaly, Peloponnese and the Aegean islands, while it was second in western Greece, Sterea and Crete in terms of high average temperatures. “It is worth emphasizing that the two warmest Januarys since 2010 have been recorded in the past three years,” – says Mr. Costas Laguvardos “K”.director of research at the Athens Observatory and scientific director of meteo.gr.

“In the regions of Central and Western Macedonia, as well as in Eastern Macedonia – Thrace, the average maximum temperature in January 2023 was 3.2 degrees Celsius above the average for the decade 2010-2019, which was a warm decade. If the comparison were made with more than in the early decades, the discrepancy would have been even greater, but we do not have complete data at the observatory for such a comparison.It is even worth emphasizing that January was the fourth month in a row with significant positive temperature deviations for Northern Greece, which is an alarming fact in connection with the consolidation of the situation” , says Mr. Laguvardos.

Climb up everywhere

The positive deviation was also large in Thessaly (2.6°C), in Central Greece (2.3°C), in the Peloponnese and the Aegean Islands (2°C), and in Epirus (1.5°C) and Crete. (1.6°C). less but significant.

“It is impressive that in our network there was not a single climate station out of 53 where a negative deviation was recorded in January of this year. Northern Greece and Thessaly had the most days with positive deviations. In Makrohori Veria we had 29 out of 31 days with elevated average temperatures, and in Trikala and Dion Pieria we had 28 days,” notes Mr. Lagouvardos.

January was also very warm in Athens, with 25 out of 31 days of the month above the average high temperatures of the previous decade. The average monthly deviation in Athens reached +1.8°С. Accordingly, in Thessaloniki the hottest days were 24 days out of 31, and the average deviation for the entire month rose to +3.6°C! In the same period, several stations, for example, in Thessaloniki, also set records for the maximum temperature for January. The date that stands out throughout the country and especially in Northern Greece was January 19, when the positive temperature deviations were very large. In Florina, the maximum temperature that day was 13 degrees Celsius above the 10-year average of 2010-2019!

If you look at the evolution of temperatures over time, then until January 20-22, elevated temperatures prevail everywhere, but there are also local exceptions associated with the presence of fog. The decrease in temperature occurred in the last five days of January, when daily negative deviations were also presented in a number of regions.

No snow

Accordingly, the image of the snow cover was formed. “Until mid-January, snow cover throughout the country was extremely low. Only by the end of the month did it reach the usual level for the season, ”says the observatory’s research director.

In the coming days, weather conditions will change significantly with the arrival of a cold front. The temperature will drop significantly, and the cold will be noticeable. In this case, precipitation will fall, which in some cases will appear in the form of sleet and sleet.