There are fewer and fewer clouds over Spain. Summer warming in Europe has been much faster than the global average.and in most of the continent, warming is already more than two degrees Celsius compared to the pre-industrial era. This is especially Iberian Peninsulais one of the European regions most rapidly affected by climate change, as the effects of high temperatures and soil desertification feed each other. Reduced evaporation also results in reduced cloudiness.
According to a new study by researchers at Stockholm University, as a result of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissionsThe air has also become drier across the continent, particularly in southern Europe, leading to worsening heatwaves and a higher fire risk.
According to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), In terrestrial areas, warming occurs significantly faster than in the oceans, with an average of 1.6 degrees Celsius and 0.9 degrees Celsius, respectively.. This means that the global budget for greenhouse gas emissions is already exhausted to keep the world’s warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Now, the new study — it’s emerging Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres— shows that The emissions budget (or current margin) was also exhausted to avoid a 2°C warming in most of Europe during the summer period (April-September).. In fact, measurements reveal that summer warming has already exceeded two degrees Celsius in most of Europe over the past four decades.
“Climate change is serious because, among other things, it causes more frequent heatwaves in Europe. These increase the risk of fires, such as the devastating fires in Southern Europe in the summer of 2022,” says Paul Glantz. Associate professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences at Stockholm University and lead author of the study, in a statement.
Few clouds in Spain
in Southern Europe and especially in the Iberian Peninsula, clear positive feedback caused by global warming. warming increases due to drier soil and reduced evaporation. There was also less cloud cover over much of Europe, possibly as a result of less water vapor in the air.
This fact also causes a noticeable reduction in clouds over the summer, as evidenced by the data collected throughout the investigation.
“Drying out and depleting soil moisture leads to more surface warming due to less evaporative cooling, which in turn increases the sensible heat that heats the lower air layers. reduced evaporation leads to reduced cloudiness“, says the article, which clearly refers to Spain.
“What we’re seeing in Southern Europe is in line with the IPCC predictions that more human impact on the greenhouse effect will lead to drier areas on Earth being even drier,” says Paul Glantz.
The study also includes a section on the estimated effect of aerosol particles (particles produced by the combustion of hydrocarbons) on temperature increases. According to Paul Glantz, For example, the rapid warming in Central and Eastern Europe is primarily a result of human emissions of long-lived greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide. For example, short-lived aerosol particulate emissions from coal-fired power plants have declined significantly over the past four decades, but the combined effect has led to extreme temperature rises of more than two degrees Celsius.
“Aerosol particles in the air masked warming caused by human greenhouse gases before they began to decline in Europe in the early 1980s, It is slightly above an average grade in the summer term. As the aerosols in the atmosphere decreased, the temperature increased rapidly. Human carbon dioxide emissions remain the biggest threat to climate for hundreds or thousands of years,” says Paul Glantz.
According to him, this effect heralds further warming in the future in regions with high aerosol emissions such as India and China.
Reference work: https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2021JD035889
……..
Contact address of the environment department: [email protected]