As Spain suffocates in high temperatures, the ice on its mountains is melting.
Source: Profimedia
Spain’s third summer heat wave culminates todaywith temperatures reaching 44 degrees Celsius in the central and southern parts of the country, while the authorities warn of the risk of forest fires. The mercury in thermometers could rise to 40 degrees in the Basque region in northeastern Spain, which is less used to such high temperatures, the state meteorological agency AEMET said.
AEMET warned of dry storms – lightning and thunder but no rain – in many parts of the country. Southern European countries are facing record high temperatures this summer, which is why the authorities warn of health risks, especially for the elderly and those with health problems. Temperatures in some areas in the southern half of Spain remained above 27 degrees overnight on Tuesday and into Wednesday morning, AEMET spokesman Ruben Del Campo said.
“Wednesday will be the most intense day in terms of duration and temperatures,” Del Campo said, adding that the heat wave will continue into the weekend. In the city of Toledo in central Spain, where temperatures are expected to rise to 41 degrees, tourists sought refuge in bars equipped with fans. “We have to make the most of the tourist season,” said Martin, a waiter at Cafe El Greco.
The ice is melting on the mountains in Spain
Heat waves in Spain and wider Europe this summer have also worsened and prolonged the drought, reducing water levels due to evaporation and increased consumptionprompting authorities in Catalonia to impose restrictions.
While Spain suffocates under high temperatures, the ice on her mountains is melting. “Cryosphere,” a scientific journal that focuses on frozen waters and soils, published a paper Tuesday showing how the glacier Dillthe largest in the Pyrenees, is melting and could disappear completely.
The paper shows that the glacier lost about two-thirds of its surface between 1981 and 2022 and that now it is only half a square kilometer. The thickness of the ice on the glacier was reduced by about 30 meters in the same period. Melting accelerated in 2021 and 2022, both exceptionally warm years in Spain.
(WORLD)