2020 European heat wave
The 2020 European heat wave is an ongoing period of unusually hot weather affecting much of Western and Central Europe, starting around the end of July.
Date | 30 July 2020 – |
---|---|
Location | Europe |
Type | Heat wave |
By country
Belgium
On 31 July, much of the country exceeded 35 °C (95 °F). Temperatures up to 36.5 °C (97.7 °F) were recorded in Brussels.[1][2] On 7 August, 10 Regions in Belgium were put under a red heat wave bulletin by the Royal Meteorological Institute with the majority of the country forecasted to exceed over 32 °C (90 °F).[3]
France
France is one of the most affected countries during the heatwave, with much of the country exceeding 35 °C (95 °F) and the majority of Central and Northern France exceeding 38 °C (100 °F) on 31 July.[4] Paris recorded temperatures up to 39.5 °C (103.1 °F) at Orly Airport and Le Bourget Airport.[5][6]. Coastal areas in Hauts-de-France have also exceeded 38 °C (100 °F) on 31 July. Temperatures as high as 37.9 °C (100.2 °F) at Boulogne-sur-Mer,[7] beating the previous record of 36.4 °C (97.5 °F) recorded the year before on 25 July 2019.[8].
Temperatures in France have cooled down considerably during the start of August until 5 August where temperatures began to rise again. On 6 August, much of the country exceeded 32 °C (90 °F). On August 7, 45 departments were included in an Orange heat wave alert by MétéoFrance. Much of the country is forecasted to exceed 35 °C (95 °F).[9][10]
The Netherlands
On 31 July, temperatures as high as 36.7 °C (98.1 °F) were recorded in Westdorpe.[11] On 7 August, 4 Provinces in the South of the Netherlands were put under a Code Orange warning for extreme heat. The majority of the Netherlands is forecasted to exceed 32 °C (90 °F).[12]
United Kingdom
On 31 July, the majority of England exceeded 30 °C (86 °F) and the majority of the Southeast and Midlands exceeding 32 °C (90 °F). Temperatures in London reached as high as 37.8 °C (100.0 °F) at Heathrow Airport.[13]
Despite being discouraged from doing so due to Covid-19-related rules around social distancing, crowds of tourists flocked to many UK beach resorts on the 31st July, most notably Brighton, Dorset and Kent coastlines. [14]
Temperatures in the United Kingdom cooled down considerably during the start of August. However, on 6 August, temperatures began to rise again, with 30.1 °C (86.2 °F) being recorded in Wisley. On 7 August, much of southern England exceeded over 32 °C (90 °F). with 36.4 °C (97.5 °F) being recorded at Heathrow Airport.[15] This was followed by four more days of temperatures reaching at least 34 °C (93 °F) somewhere on UK soil, including 35.7 °C (96.3 °F) being recorded at Heathrow Airport on 11 August[16], and 36 °C (97 °F) being forecast for the London area on the 12 August.
References
- "06447: Uccle (Belgium)". Ogimet.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "06451: Bruxelles National (Belgium)". Ogimet.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "Warning Heatwave". Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "Synop Summary for France 31/7/2020". Ogimet.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "07149: Paris-Orly (France)". Ogimet.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "07150: Paris / Le Bourget (France)". Ogimet.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "07002: Boulogne (France)". Ogimet.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "07150: 07002: Boulogne (France)". Ogimet.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "Waarschuwing". Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "Météo-France". meteofrance.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "06319: Westdorpe Aws (Netherlands)". Ogimet.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "Waarschuwing". Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "03772: London / Heathrow Airport (United Kingdom)". Ogimet.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "Beach crowds descend on Bournemouth, Brighton and Poole". BBC News. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
- "Station météorologique de Londres - 6 Aout 2020". InfoClimat. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
- "Station météorologique de Londres - 11 Aout 2020". InfoClimat. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
See also
- July 2019 European heat wave, a similar but much longer lasting and hotter period of weather in the same region