Weather tracker: Europe braces for swing from Arctic chill to extreme heat | Europe weather
Following a long period of cool weather across much of Europe, a dramatic fluctuation in temperatures is expected in the coming days as warm air rises northward into the western and central parts of the continent.
A large blockade over the North Atlantic and slow-moving low pressure over southern Scandinavia dragged Arctic air south last week, causing temperatures to fall 10-15C below the seasonal average for more than a week.
Overnight frosts have affected gardeners and farmers, including in France, where grape growers lit fires to protect their vineyards. Such widespread and persistent cold weather has become increasingly rare in recent years, as Europe continues to warm faster than other continents as a result of the climate crisis.
The cool, unstable weather also combined with the strong May sun to trigger widespread storms. Approximately 750,000 lightning strikes were recorded in Europe and surrounding regions between May 11 and 16.
Serbia’s national weather and hydrological service issued a red warning for strong winds, heavy rain and hail. Over the weekend, the spread of low pressure to the northwest of Europe interrupted the northern flow and winds turned more westerly.
Later this week, a large high pressure area is expected to form in the western parts of the continent and draw warm air from North Africa. On Friday, temperatures could rise 15 degrees higher than a week ago in countries including France and the UK, while temperatures could reach the mid-to-high 30s Celsius in Spain and Portugal. Overnight lows in these areas may exceed daytime highs recorded last week.
Dramatic temperature contrasts are also emerging across the U.S. this week. Such fluctuations are especially noticeable in late spring. In the northwest, where temperatures rose to nearly 30°C last week, cold air is blowing southward from Canada and interacting with low pressure to create the region’s second winter storm of the month.
Snowfall of up to 46 cm (18 inches) at highest ground is expected early this week in upland areas of Wyoming, northern Colorado and northeastern Utah. Winds of up to 96 km/h are expected to trigger snowstorms and create dangerous driving conditions in some places.
Further southwest, high winds and persistently low humidity have triggered red flag warnings in many states and signaled increased wildfire risk.
To the east, the sharp contrast between cold air and warmer, wetter conditions in the central U.S. is likely to trigger further development of the storm.
The Storm Prediction Center warned of a 15% chance of a tornado on Monday in four central states covering a region home to about 900,000 people.
