A cold drop, planted hard off Portugal, will have a heat pump effect. An increasingly warm air mass will already have the opportunity to rise from North Africa towards the Iberian Peninsula. France, Spain and Portugal are likely to be particularly affected by this heat wave.
From the beginning of the week, temperatures may rise above 40 degrees Celsius in several regions of France and Spain. This stifling heat can gain strength over the course of days: the area of high pressure and attendant sunny days will comfortably settle in Western Europe. So an already existing drought could worsen, and conditions would be favorable for wildfires.
Heat wave thresholds can be reached for several days in a row across France.
It is practically a copy of the previous heat wave that erupted in this part of the continent in June. Several heat records were broken during this episode, even the Arctic Circle.
And it’s not over yet: a severe heat wave could extend its visit to next week.
hot spot
The more time passed, the more Western Europe became a hotspot for heat waves. In fact, A study recently published in Nature Communications It indicates that the region is warming three to four times faster than other regions at the same latitudes. This trend has been accelerating for 42 years due to an increased occurrence of a particular meteorological phenomenon: the twin jet stream. This occurs when the jet stream splits in two. Previously, this type of weather pattern was rather brief, tends to assert itself for a longer period and has a noticeable effect on heat waves reaching Western Europe.
See also: Desert sand, a major obstacle to tropical activity
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