May already brought the first heat warning this year and in June we have to suffer one of the most intense heat waves in living memory. Although most of the coastal areas are outside the AEMET warnings for high temperatures, only the autonomous communities of the Canary Islands and Asturias are completely spared.
The biggest heat wave in June in 20 years.
We were warned that the heat wave would come, but this one has exceeded expectations. The thermal anomaly we are experiencing has already been classified as the largest heat wave seen in June of the last two decades. There are 36 zones on orange alert due to high temperatures today, spread over eight Autonomous Communities, according to data from AEMET (plus another 48 zones on yellow notice for the same reason). The southern plateau and surrounding areas are the most affected, although the Ebro valley in Zaragoza and the south of Lleida are also in this situation.
How long will it end?
AEMET alerts extend to three days ahead, until Thursday 16. For this day the map of warnings and alerts it will have almost been reversed, observing the level of significant risk (orange warning) in the Ebro valley, Huesca, Lleida and in limited areas of the south in areas of Badajoz, Córdoba and Jaén, while the rest of the peninsular interior will be in yellow warning .
The heat wave will continue until at least Friday the 17th, although from then on the picture is not so clear. AEMET forecasts speak of temperatures that will exceed 40 degrees on Saturday in the Ebro valley. The cause of this uncertainty is an isolated depression (DANA) located yesterday in the Madeira area, whose evolution remains to be seen.
in Xataka
We knew this heat wave was going to be tough, but we didn’t expect it to be this bad
In the long run, we will have to get used to it.
Although the task of linking a specific meteorological event to the global effect of climate change she `s complicatedall seems to indicate that heat waves will worsen in the coming years. There are two aspects of climate change that make us think that it will have an effect on heat waves. First, the increase in extreme events. This ranges from storms to frost, but also days of extreme heat.
Second, rising average temperatures will also have an effect. A key issue in heat waves comes into play here, and that is that there is no clear definition. Generally, the definition of a heat wave appears based on the observed temperatures, so it is possible that, given an increase in average temperatures, the “border” from which a heat wave is declared would increase. In other words, situations that are considered exceptional today would become normal.
They start earlier, are stronger and last longer.
In recent years we have already been able to observe how these phenomena have gained relevance, in places like India or in the United States. Spain is no exception. The heat waves in our country are, since the records began in 1975, getting longer. This is reflected both in days of duration per event, and in the total number of days per year in which we find ourselves in this situation. In 2012 heat waves affected 40 provincesthis week that figure could be exceeded if we consider the areas under warning for high temperatures.
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Living and surviving in heat.
Heat can harm our health, but it also affects our quality of life. Heat affects our health, our productivity and our sleep. To avoid its worst consequences, it is convenient to take some precautions such as avoiding the street and especially physical activity in the hottest hours of the day, hydrating ourselves well and wearing fresh clothes, especially fabrics that help us in this task, such as cotton. The youngest and the oldest are the ones who should take the most precautions against the heat.
Energy prices are still high so it is advisable not to abuse the air conditioning. Therefore, we must be careful to keep our house cool, especially if we want to have a restful sleep that does not accumulate fatigue due to the heaviness generated by the temperature.
Image | AP
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The news
The question is no longer when the heat wave will go away. The question is if it ever will
was originally published in
Xataka
by Pablo Martinez-Juarez .
