2020 was the hottest year on record for Europe. At the same time, the year also saw extreme wildfires in the Arctic which was partly attributed to low snow cover. This was disclosed by the European Union’s observation service pinning the blame on climate change whose impact has intensified.
A stark reminder that the impacts of a warmer world are already here was issued by EU scientists.
The Copernicus Earth observation service said that in 2020, the average annual temperature in Europe was the highest on record and was at least 0.4 degrees Celsius above the next five warmest years -- all of which were in the previous decade.
"Temperatures are increasing in all seasons in Europe," said Freja Vamborg, senior scientist at Copernicus.
Copernicus has been keeping temperature records since 1950. Copernicus said that 2020 was also the hottest on record for Europe when compared with datasets beginning in 1850.
2020 also saw the hottest winter on record for the continent with average temperature at 3.4 degrees Celsius higher than the average European winter temperature that had been recorded between 1981 and 2020.
Last year was also the hottest autumn for Europe. In comparison the heatwaves during the summer were not as intense ort prolonged as in a few years in the recent past even though there were parts of the continent that reported record-breaking heat, including in Scandinavia and France.
Vamborg said that 2020 was a "spectacular year" for the Arctic as he pointed to a summer where there were record-breaking wildfires in Arctic Siberia which were aggravated because of high temperatures and lower-than-average snow cover.
The average temperature in Arctic Siberia last year broke records by a large margin at 4.3 degrees Celsius above the 1981-2020 average.
Last year was also amongst the three hottest years on record for the world as a whole, Copernicus Earth said, which conformed to findings released earlier this week by the World Meteorological Organization.
Earlier this week, a target to cut down on carbon emissions much faster this decade was set by the EU while the United States is expected to take the same path during the climate summit organized by the US president Joe Biden. Those new targets are expected to increase pressure to do the same on other countries including China and India.
According to scientists and policy makers, the combined pledges to cut down on carbon emissions as made by various countries are not enough to meet the target to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels and to avoid most of the severe negative impact of climate change.
(Source:www.ndtv.com)
A stark reminder that the impacts of a warmer world are already here was issued by EU scientists.
The Copernicus Earth observation service said that in 2020, the average annual temperature in Europe was the highest on record and was at least 0.4 degrees Celsius above the next five warmest years -- all of which were in the previous decade.
"Temperatures are increasing in all seasons in Europe," said Freja Vamborg, senior scientist at Copernicus.
Copernicus has been keeping temperature records since 1950. Copernicus said that 2020 was also the hottest on record for Europe when compared with datasets beginning in 1850.
2020 also saw the hottest winter on record for the continent with average temperature at 3.4 degrees Celsius higher than the average European winter temperature that had been recorded between 1981 and 2020.
Last year was also the hottest autumn for Europe. In comparison the heatwaves during the summer were not as intense ort prolonged as in a few years in the recent past even though there were parts of the continent that reported record-breaking heat, including in Scandinavia and France.
Vamborg said that 2020 was a "spectacular year" for the Arctic as he pointed to a summer where there were record-breaking wildfires in Arctic Siberia which were aggravated because of high temperatures and lower-than-average snow cover.
The average temperature in Arctic Siberia last year broke records by a large margin at 4.3 degrees Celsius above the 1981-2020 average.
Last year was also amongst the three hottest years on record for the world as a whole, Copernicus Earth said, which conformed to findings released earlier this week by the World Meteorological Organization.
Earlier this week, a target to cut down on carbon emissions much faster this decade was set by the EU while the United States is expected to take the same path during the climate summit organized by the US president Joe Biden. Those new targets are expected to increase pressure to do the same on other countries including China and India.
According to scientists and policy makers, the combined pledges to cut down on carbon emissions as made by various countries are not enough to meet the target to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels and to avoid most of the severe negative impact of climate change.
(Source:www.ndtv.com)
