​Europe’s climate has warmed twice as fast as the rest of the world compared to the second half of the 19th century, with temperatures rising by an average of 2.3 C. Data from the UN and the European Copernicus Program compares the year 2022. with a period of more than 120 years ago.

Europe’s climate has warmed by 2.3°C compared to a global average of 1.2°C. Everything is related to the pre-industrial period: 1850-1900, when Europe warmed the fastest in the last four decades. Over the past 40 years, the continent has warmed by an average of 0.5 C per decade. The regions of northern Europe warmed the most.

• How Romania’s climate has changed over the past 60 years – Heat wave, extreme weather, mid-winter heat, strong storms and disappearing snow

Rising temperatures have led to intense and widespread droughts, wildfires even in the north, and increased heat-related deaths.

In 2022, extreme weather events are estimated to directly affect 156,000 people in Europe and lead to 16,000 deaths, mostly due to heat waves.

• Since 1971, the Arctic has warmed three times faster than the rest of the Earth

In 2023, January was incredibly hot, in Spain there was heat since April, and in June there were hot fires not only in the south of Europe, but also in the north (Sweden, Norway, Finland).

For example, May was rainy in many areas of the south, but very dry in areas of southern Scandinavia and western European Russia.

Source: AFP