Europe is the fastest warming continent. As a result of the climate crisis, 2023 was one of the two warmest years on record in Europe. With the record number of “extreme heat stress” days, heat-related deaths were higher than normal.
According to a report by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Copernicus Climate Change Service, climate change disruptions will cause record levels of disruption and misery for millions of people in Europe in 2023, with widespread flooding and heat waves big, a new normal that countries must adapt to as a priority.
Practically, this resulted in a record number of days of “extreme thermal stress” across Europe, a “growing trend” on the continent, and a “long summer” from June to September, on characterized by heat waves, forest fires, droughts and floods.
“According to the data, 2023 was the warmest year or the second warmest year on record,” according to the WMO, which indicates that “heat-related mortality has has increased by around 30% in the past 20 years and is estimated to be “heat-related. Deaths have increased in 94% of the European regions surveyed.”
An exact estimate of heat-related deaths for 2023 is not yet available, but it is estimated that between 55,000 and 72,000 people died from heat waves in 2003, 2010 and 2022.
The findings of the State of the Climate in Europe 2023 report highlight the growing dangers of climate change on a global scale, but are particularly important as the continent is the warming the fastest.
“The climate crisis is the greatest challenge of our generation,” said Celeste Saulo, secretary general of this UN body. “The cost of climate action may seem high, but the cost of inaction is much higher. “As this report shows, we need to take advantage of science to provide solutions for the good of the community.”
The researchers, who followed up a decade ago, found that citizens and some health care professionals had a “low-risk perception” of the risks of heat stroke.
To counter this, early warning systems are designed to raise awareness of the imminence of severe weather and to encourage preparedness.
According to the UN agency, land temperatures in Europe were above average for 11 months of the year in 2023, including the warmest September on record.
According to the report, rainfall was also 7% above average, and the flow of European rivers reached record levels in December, with “extremely high” flows in almost a quarter of the river network.
This meant that by 2023 “high” flood levels would be exceeded in a third of Europe’s river network, and around one in seven would exceed “severe” flood thresholds .
Record sea surface temperatures across Europe also mirrored the worrying warming trend on land, with an alarming “sea heat wave” present in June in the Atlantic west of Ireland and around the UK. According to the WMO, the phenomenon was considered “extreme” and in some areas “more distant”, with sea surface temperatures up to 5 degrees Celsius above average.
“For the year as a whole, the average sea surface temperature in Europe’s oceans was the warmest on record,” the WMO said. of the sea in history in some parts of the Mediterranean and the North-East Atlantic.”
With a focus on sustainability and resilience against the disruptions of climate change, the UN agency’s report highlighted a record increase in electricity generation through renewable technologies in Europe.
This was due to above average storm activity from October to December, which resulted in above average wind energy production. Also significant was above-average hydropower generation across much of Europe in 2023, linked to above-average rainfall and river flows.
On the other hand, energy generation using solar panels was below average in north-west and central Europe, but above average in south-west, south and Scandinavia.
The World Meteorological Organization’s update on the state of the climate also confirmed suspicions that much of Europe saw fewer snow days than average, particularly in central Europe and the Alps in winter and spring
This led to a notable loss of glacial ice in the Alps, exacerbated by strong summer melting caused by heat waves, with the glaciers losing around 10% of their their volume in 2022 and 2023.
The 2023 data did nothing to ease concerns about the Earth’s poles, as temperatures in the Arctic were the sixth warmest on record. Breaking it down further, temperatures over Arctic land were the fifth warmest on record, very close to those of 2022. “The past five warmest years recorded in Arctic territories has all occurred since 2016,” said the WMO.
The changing level of the Arctic Ocean remained below average for most of 2023, the UN agency also said. “At its annual high in March, monthly expansion was 4% below average, the fifth lowest on record. At its annual low in September, the monthly spread was the sixth lowest, 18% below average. “
On the other hand, total carbon emissions from wildfires in the subarctic and arctic regions were the second highest on record in 2023, the WMO said, associated with high-latitude wildfires, and the majority occurred -some of them in Canada between May and September. (United Nations Information).
