| Above: A resident points to a forest fire raging near Maials in the northeastern region of Catalonia, Spain, on June 27, 2019. Image credit: Pau Barrena/AFP/Getty Images. |
Europe’s brutal June heat wave is less than half over, but all-time June national heat records have already fallen in five nations. Extreme heat is expected to last through Monday over portions of Western and Southern Europe, thanks to a “stuck” jet stream pattern that has allowed a hot airmass from the Sahara Desert to flow northwards into Europe.
Wednesday’s all-time June national heat records:
Poland, 38.2°C (100.8°F) at Radzyń; previous record 38.0°C in Wroclaw in 1935.
Czech Republic, 38.9°C (101.3°F) at Doksany; previous record 38.2°C at Brno in June 2000.
Germany, 38.6°C (101.5°F) at Coschen; previous record 38.5°C in June 1947.
Luxembourg, 36.8°C (98.2°F) at Petange; previous record 36.1°C on June 22, 2017.
Principality of Andorra, 37.8°C (100°F) at Borda Vidal; previous record 36.0°C in June 1935.
Update: an all-time June French national heat record of 42.3°C (108.1°F) was set at Gropsierres on Thursday. Previous record: 41.5°C (106.7°F), June 21, 2003.
Thanks go to Maximiliano Herrera for the Luxembourg and Andorra information. According to Herrera, the data from Andorra was the highest of the 30-minute data; the actual max has not yet been released, and could exceed the all time high of 37.9°C.
The air above @Paris, France is currently record-warm.
— Mika Rantanen (@mikarantane) June 27, 2019
Weather balloon launched last night measured 25°C at 850 hPa (~1.5 km altitude), which exceeds the previous record from 19 Aug 2012 by 1°C.
Soundings from https://t.co/Cri8b2hoXw and https://t.co/PJTZdRNikt#heatwave pic.twitter.com/ILBBwYDwJj
Wednesday: hottest June day on record averaged over all of France
Averaged throughout France, the maximum temperature Wednesday was the hottest June day on record with 34.9°C, beating the previous record of 34.3°C from June 30, 1952, according to Meteo France. The hottest temperature in the country was 41.1°C at Montclus. One French station with a long-term climate record, Clermont Ferrand, set a new all-time heat record for any month: 40.9°C. The highest fully reliable June temperature is 41.5°C (106.7°F) on June 21, 2003, at Lezignan-Corbieres, according to Etienne Kapikian (Meteo-France).
Thursday has seen even higher temperatures than Wednesday in France. At least 3 stations with long-term periods of record set new all-time heat records, according to Kapikian:
Rochelle: 40.5°C (previous record: 39.4°C on August 4, 2003)
Aurillan: 38.1°C (previous record 38.0°C on July 30, 1983)
Embrun: 36.9°C (previous record 36.7°C on July 7, 2015)
Meteo-France is warning that Friday will be the hottest day of the heat wave in France, with temperatures potentially reaching 45°C in southern France. This would beat the all-time national heat record of 44.1°C (111.4°F), set on Aug. 12, 2003.
According to a discussion from severe-weather.eu,
What makes Friday potentially a record-breaking heat event is the combination of extremely warm airmass and dry northerly winds, resulting is enhanced / additional warming airmass with downslope (Föehn) winds from the Massif Central and the Auvergne Mountains into Provence and the Languedoc-Roussillon regions. Near-surface wind forecast indicates the NNE-early winds will be quite strong through the Rhone valley, resulting in gusting downslope winds towards the coast. This will result in extreme heat potential and in addition, an extremely dangerous threat for wildfires as airmass will also be very dry with low relative humidity!
Hottest June day on record over much of Germany
Wednesday was the hottest June day on record over much of Germany, with the German weather service reporting that 204 of 451 of their active stations broke or tied their June record, according to an email from German meteorologist Michael Theusner. Eleven of those stations broke or tied their all-time heat record for any month. The hottest temperature measured in Germany was 38.6°C (101.5°F) at Coschen (Brandenburg) and Bad Muskau (Saxony). Have a look here if you want the details (A+: all-time maximum, M+: monthly maximum). Two addtional all-time heat records were set on Thursday: Rottweil (36.0°C) and Greiswalder Oie (32.3°C).
Germany's highest mountain, the Zugspitze, where weather records extend back to 1900, saw its all-time highest daily minimum temperature, with 12.2°C.
The hottest day of the heat wave for Germany is likely to be Sunday, when the WU forecast is showing a high of 39.4°C (103°F) for Berlin. Germany’s all-time heat record is 40.3°C (104.5°F), set on July 5 and August 7, 2015. On Sunday, temperatures over 40°C may occur in parts of eastern Germany, western Poland and the Czech Republic.
All-time record heat in Austria, Switzerland, and Italy
All-time heat records for any month were also set at numerous cities in Switzerland, Austria, and Italy on Wednesday and Thursday. Here is a partial list, courtesy of Maximiliano Herrera. The record at Saentis, the highest peak in northeast Switzerland (elevation of 2502 meters), was set with 3 meters of snow on the ground.
Davos, Switzerland, 29.8°C
San Bernardino, Switzerland, 29.4°C
Schul (Scuol), Switzerland, 33.3°C
Saentis, Switzerland, 21°C
Corvatsch, Switzerland, 13.3°C
Piotta, 35.4°C
Montana, 31.0°C
Cimetta, 29.7°C
Alpinzentrum Rudolhshuette, Austria, 21.8°C
Imst, Austria, 37.5°C
Prutz, Austria, 36.4°C
Seefeld, Austria, 32.7°C
Schrocken, Austria, 31.7°C
Schmittenhohe, Austria, 25.0°C
Aosta, Italy, 40.4°C
Mondovi, Italy, 40.2°C
Bolzano, Italy, 40.0°C
Wildfires in Spain
Northeastern Spain experienced temperatures in excess of 40°C (104°F) on Friday, which aided the spread of a wildfire in the northeast region of Catalonia, which has burned about 21 square miles of land, the Associated Press reported. More than 120 firefighters were working to contain the blaze and 53 residents had been evacuated.
Wildfire danger is predicted to steadily increase during week, reaching the “Extreme” level by the weekend over portions of France, Italy, Portugal, Germany, and Poland, according the Copernicus Emergency Management Service. The European Union is already well above recent norms for hectares burned and number of fires ignited in 2019.
