The late May heatwave in Europe has broken records in more than half a dozen countries. For example, in Oxford, England, where a continuously operating weather station has been keeping records since 1815, a new May record was set on the 26th at nearly 93 degrees Fahrenheit. London reached 95 degrees; the highest temperature ever registered this early in the year.
Parts of France saw temperatures over 100 degrees. Before 1989, heatwaves occurred on average only once every five years in mainland France. Since 2000, at least one heatwave has been recorded every summer.
The heatwave was linked to at least 12 deaths in the UK, 7 in France, and undoubtedly more elsewhere. In the U.S., roughly 90% of households have air-conditioning of one sort or another. In Europe, only 20% do, according to the International Energy Agency. This makes high temperatures particularly dangerous on the continent.
Experts explained that the heat, which occurred across much of France, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Liechtenstein, Spain, Portugal, and U.K., was made three to five times more likely because of the effects of climate change. According to a climate scientist in England, the record-breaking heat has the fingerprints of climate change all over it.
The specific cause of the heatwave was a so-called heat dome that moved up from Northern Africa and then got stuck in place under a high-pressure system that settled across western Europe. It was an unprecedented early start to the heat season in Europe.
