New temperature record in Europe scientifically verified

48.8 degrees Celsius in Italy

January 30, 2024 3:16 p.m. Robert Klatt

In Italy, a weather station recently recorded a new temperature record. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has now scientifically verified the data.

Geneva, Switzerland). In continental Europe, the temperature record so far was 48.0 degrees Celsius. It was measured by the government on July 11, 1977 in the Greek cities of Athens and Elefsina. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN), included this data in the archives of global weather and climate extremes when it was established in 2007. However, the WMO has not been in able to independently check the temperature.

According to a publication in International Journal of Climatology to the World Meteorological Organization The new official temperature record of 48.8 degrees Celsius has now been verified. WMO’s extensive surveys are necessary to be able to certify weather observations with a high level of accuracy and reliability.

Temperature record in Italy

The temperature record was measured on August 11, 2021 by a weather station on the Italian island of Sicily. According to Professor Randall Cerveny, rapporteur for climate and weather extremes at WMO, an increase in these weather extremes can be expected in the future.

“The extremes subject to WMO assessment are “snapshots” of our current climate. It is possible, even likely, that major extremes will occur in Europe in the future. When such observations are made, new WMO assessment committees will be formed to judge these observations as extreme.

Professor Cerveny’s thesis is also shared by other scientists. A study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) recently concluded that someone born in 2020 will experience heat waves and other extreme weather events seven times more often than someone born in 1960.

International Journal of Climatology, doi: 10.1002/joc.8361