Disruptions caused by climate change caused record levels of disruption and misery for millions of people in Europe in 2023, with widespread flooding and severe heatwaves, a new normal to which countries must adapt as a priority, according to a report by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Copernicus Climate Change Service.
In practical terms, this led to a record number of days with “extreme thermal stress” across Europe, “a growing trend” on the continent, and a “prolonged summer” from June to September, marked by heat waves, forest fires, , droughts and floods.
“Depending on the data, 2023 was the warmest or second warmest year on record,” according to the WMO, which highlights that “heat-related mortality has increased by around 30% in the last 20 years and is estimated to “Heat-related deaths have increased in 94% of the European regions monitored.”
Unenviable record
An accurate 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 conclusions of the State of the Climate in Europe 2023 report reflect the increasing disruptions of climate change on a global scale, but are especially significant because the continent is the fastest warming.
“The climate crisis is the greatest challenge of our generation,” said Celeste Saulo, secretary general of this UN agency. “The cost of climate action may seem high, but the cost of inaction is much higher. As this report shows, we must harness science to provide solutions for the good of society.”
The researchers, who followed up a decade ago, found that citizens and some healthcare professionals also had “a low risk perception” of the dangers of heat stroke.
To counter this, early warning systems are designed to raise awareness of the imminence of extreme weather events and 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 ever recorded.
According to the report, rainfall was also 7% above average, and the flow of European rivers reached record levels in December, with “exceptionally high” flows in almost a quarter of the river network.
This meant that during 2023 “high” flood thresholds were exceeded in a third of the European river network, while around one in seven exceeded “severe” flood thresholds.
Peak heat beyond extreme
Record sea surface temperatures across Europe also reflected the deeply worrying warming trend on land, with an alarming “marine heatwave” present in June, in the Atlantic Ocean west of Ireland and around the UK. According to the WMO, the phenomenon was classified as “extreme” and in some areas “beyond extreme”, 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 ever recorded,” the WMO stated. “The highest average annual sea surface temperature in history was recorded in some parts of the Mediterranean Sea and the northeastern Atlantic Ocean.”
Focusing on sustainability and resilience to the disruptions of climate change, the UN organization’s report highlighted a record increase in electricity generation through renewable technologies in Europe.
This was due to above-normal 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 during 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 the south-west, south and Scandinavia.
Fewer snow days
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, especially in central Europe and the Alps during the winter and spring.
This caused an exceptional loss of glacial ice in the Alps, aggravated by the strong summer melt caused by heat waves, with which the glaciers lost around 10% of their volume in 2022 and 2023.
Arctic shock
The 2023 data did nothing to allay concerns about the Earth’s poles, as temperatures in the Arctic were the sixth warmest ever recorded. Breaking this down further, temperatures across Arctic land masses were the fifth warmest on record, very close to 2022. “The five warmest years on record for Arctic lands have all occurred since 2016,” the WMO noted. .
The fluctuating extent of the Arctic Sea remained below average for most of 2023, the UN agency also reported. “At its annual high in March, monthly extension was 4% below average, ranking fifth lowest on record. At its annual low in September, monthly extension was sixth lowest, down 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, related to high-latitude wildfires, most of which occurred in Canada between May and September.
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