Europe is the fastest warming country in the world

Europe experienced its hottest year on record in 2023, according to an annual summary report by scientists at the Copernicus Climate Change Service and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), showing an alarming future for the world's fastest-warming continent.

Europe saw its largest wildfires on record last year, as well as some of its most damaging floods ever.

People witness a forest fire near the village of Sikorrachi, Alexandroupolis, Greece on August 23, 2023. (Photo: Bloomberg)

Europe is warming the fastest

The report said 2023 was one of the hottest years on record in Europe, driven by climate change and the El Nino weather pattern. Extreme temperatures have fueled wildfires in the region. An area of forest burned last year equal to the combined area of London, Paris and Berlin.

Greece recorded the largest forest fire ever in the European Union (EU), with 960 square kilometers burned, equivalent to twice the area of the country's Athens metropolitan area.

According to WMO data, the average global temperature in 2023 was 1.45 degrees Celsius higher than pre-industrial times. The warming temperatures led to heavy rainfall. All of Europe received about 7% more rain than usual.

In August 2023, Slovenia was hit by devastating floods that caused billions of euros in damage, making it one of the worst natural disasters ever to hit an EU country.

The town of Ravne na Koroskem in Slovenia is deeply submerged during floods in August 2023. (Photo: CNN)

According to Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of Copernicus and one of the authors of the "State of the European Climate" report, the report paints a worrying picture for the continent, as atmospheric carbon dioxide and methane emissions continue to rise, while the rate of warming in Europe is at around 0.4 degrees Celsius per decade, twice the global average.

“As air temperatures and greenhouse gas concentrations continue to rise, we will continue to see more frequent and more intense extreme weather events,” Burgess said. “So we are likely to continue to see further record-breaking weather events until we stabilize the climate and reach net zero emissions.”

Europe is forecast to have to adapt to higher temperatures faster than any other region, with areas near the Arctic, such as Greenland, warming the fastest.

The entire continent would face warming of 3C, even if the world succeeds in limiting global temperature rises to that level. The effects would be most pronounced in regions such as the Alps, where glaciers have lost 10% of their remaining volume in the past two years.

Temperatures in some parts of Europe nearly reached 50 degrees Celsius during the peak of the heatwave on July 23, 2023. (Photo: European Space Agency)

Positive signals

While man-made greenhouse gases are the main factor driving global temperature rises, Europe’s unusual rise is partly due to ocean currents and a warmer atmosphere. Meanwhile, regulations aimed at cleaning up the air have also removed heat-reflecting particles from the atmosphere across the continent.

In 2024, Europe could see some positive signs as El Niño shifts to a more neutral state or even a cooler La Niña event.

More extreme weather also helped boost Europe’s potential renewable energy production, thanks to stronger winds later in the year and stronger river flows for hydropower. Record amounts of clean energy were produced last year, with nearly half coming from renewable sources.

The Copernicus programme uses billions of measurements from satellites, ships, aircraft and weather stations around the world to produce monthly and seasonal forecasts. Together with the European Space Agency, Copernicus is at the heart of the EU’s €16 billion effort to combat climate change through accurate forecasting. This is the first time the programme has collaborated with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) to produce this report.

New scientific reports will call for stronger efforts to cut emissions at home and abroad.

The EU is currently off track to meet its target of reducing CO2 emissions by 55% by the end of the decade, with polls showing support for climate skeptics ahead of European Parliament elections in June.

Source: https://giadinh.suckhoedoisong.vn/nhiet-do-chau-au-nong-nhanh-nhat-the-gioi-172240423072437498.htm