What is causing the winter heat wave in Europe?
Context- Several parts of Europe witnessed an unprecedented winter heat wave over New Year’s weekend. Calling it an “extreme event”, experts said that temperatures increased 10 to 20 degrees Celsius above normal.
At least seven countries have recorded their hottest January weather ever. These included Poland, Denmark, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Belarus, Lithuania and Latvia.
According to The Washington Post report, the continent is experiencing an extreme warm spell because of the formation of a heat dome over the region.
What is a heat dome?
A heat dome occurs when an area of high-pressure traps warm air over a region, just like a lid on a pot, for an extended period of time. The longer that air remains trapped, the more the sun works to heat the air, producing warmer conditions with every passing day. Heat domes generally stay for a few days but sometimes they can extend up to weeks, which might cause deadly heat waves.
Scientists suggest that any region of high pressure, whether a heat dome or not, forces air to sink and once it reaches the ground, it gets compressed and becomes even warmer. Moreover, when air sinks, it gets drier and further raises the temperature of the area.
(Credits- The Washington Post)
What is the relationship between heat domes and the jet stream?
The heat dome’s formation is related to the behaviour of the jet stream — an area of fast-moving air high in the atmosphere. The jet stream is believed to have a wave-like pattern that keeps moving from north to south and then north again. When these waves get bigger and elongated, they move slowly and sometimes can become stationary. This is when a high-pressure system gets stuck and leads to the occurrence of a heat dome.
Although heat domes are likely to have always existed, researchers say that climate change may be making them more intense and longer. They suggest with the rising temperatures, it is expected that the jet stream will become more wavy and will have larger deviations, causing more frequent extreme heat events.
What are some previous instances of heat domes?
In 2021, a heat dome formed over western Canada and the US, causing deadly heat waves. Portland city in Oregon, US, saw the mercury rise to 46 degree Celsius while the temperature in Washington hit 49 degree Celsius
Subsequently, a 2022 study found that this heat dome was amplified by climate change and it could become a once-in-10-year event if global temperatures aren’t kept under two degree Celsius above pre-industrialisation levels.
What are the other consequences of climate change?
- Increase in the global surface temperature, together with rise in greenhouse gas concentrations. The most recent ten years, 2011 to 2020, have been the warmest on record.
- Higher temperatures worsen heat-related illnesses and make it more challenging to work outside. When the weather is hotter, wildfires start more easily and spread more quickly.
- The warming ocean has an impact on both the intensity and frequency of tropical storms. Warm ocean surface waters are the primary source of cyclones, hurricanes, and typhoons.
- Water availability is changing due to climate change, becoming more scarce in many places. In already water-stressed areas, global warming makes water shortages worse.
- The ocean absorbs carbon dioxide, keeping it out of the atmosphere. However, additional carbon dioxide causes the water to become more acidic, endangering coral reefs and marine life.
- Water expands when it becomes warmer, therefore as the ocean warms, its volume will rise. Sea levels increase as a result of ice sheet melting, endangering coastal and island communities.
- Both animals on land and in the ocean are at risk of loss of species, from climate change. As the temperatures rise, these risks rise as well.
- Global hunger and poor nutrition are on the rise for a variety of reasons, including climate change and an increase in extreme weather occurrences. Crops, animals, and fisheries might all be lost or become less effective.
- Marine resources that provide food for billions of people are in danger as a result of the ocean’s increasing acidity.
- The single greatest hazard to human health is climate change. Air pollution, sickness, harsh weather, forced relocation, stress on mental health, increasing hunger and inadequate nutrition in areas where people cannot grow or get enough food are only a few of the health effects of climate change.
- Weather-related disasters have uprooted an estimated 23.1 million people annually on average over the previous ten years (2010-2019), leaving millions more at risk of poverty.
Way Forward- Collective efforts by the international community to meet the goals enshrined in the Paris Agreement (2015), in accordance with the principles of climate justice.
Source- Indian Express
NEWS- What is causing the winter heat wave in Europe?
Syllabus- GS-3; Climate change
