The Mediterranean region of more than other parts of the world is exposed to climate change. This was announced in an interview with Anadolu by the Secretary of the Athenian Academy, professor of atmosphere and climatology physics, Christ Zerefos.
According to him, the average air temperature in the Mediterranean region, which at the beginning of the twentieth century was 14.5 degrees, increased to 16.5 degrees in the current period. And the average temperature in the summer months in this region increased by 2.5-3 degrees over the past 120 years, the professor noted.
“The Mediterranean region is much more susceptible to the negative impact of global warming than other parts of the world. This is due to the fact that the Mediterranean Sea is closed and warms up easier than the ocean. Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans, the northern seas are considered more open, then As the waters of the Mediterranean Sea does not cool. The Mediterranean Sea accumulates energy as a result of warming and dumps it into the atmosphere, ”said Zerefos.
According to him, global air warming in the region occurs more actively, causing a more intense imbalance of air temperature.
“The scorching summer heat” began to be observed in Western Turkey and Greece in the 1980s, while in Western and Central Europe – in 2003, ”he said.
Zerefos drew attention to the fact that over time, the periods of the “scorching summer heat” in the 2000s began to be perceived in the long run.
“Anomalous heat in Turkey and Greece was observed in 2007, 2012, 2019, 2021,” -outlined the professor.
According to the Greece meteorological bureau, this year the hottest July has been recorded in the country over the past 14 years. The air temperature in Greece exceeded the seasonal norm of 23 of 31 calendar days.
The July air temperature in Crete was 2.8 degrees higher than the seasonal norm, while on average in the country this indicator was 1.9 degrees.
Against the backdrop of record -high temperatures and low air humidity in July, the country was seized by a large number of forest fires.
As a result of seven large forest fires raging in the country from July 15 to July 31, 470 thousand hectares of forests burned out. In Greece, an average of 435 thousand hectares of forest squares fades annually. The area of forests that has burned out since the beginning of the year in this country exceeded 550 thousand hectares.