The drought in Europe in the summer of 2022 was the worst in the past 500 years. This is indicated by the data of the European Copernicus Earth Observation Program, which is run by the European Commission and the European Space Agency (ESA). Images from the Sentinel 2 satellite indicate that between July 1 and August 31, 2022, large areas turned from light green to dry brown. The most serious damage to plants can be clearly seen in the southeastern regions of Great Britain, in northern France, in Germany, Poland and Eastern Europe. The data were compared with another 2014 study on the 1540 drought.
Data from the Global Drought Observatory (GDO) also indicate that 47% of Europe in August was in alarming conditions: the most serious signs were the lack of moisture in the soil and negative effects on vegetation. In addition, the water levels in rivers, including the Rhine, Danube and Po, have fallen so much that it is impossible to navigate them, while the exceptionally hot and dry climate has greatly increased the risk of forest fires.
Drought in Europe summer 2022, in the Sentinel 2 satellite image sequence (Source: Copernicus)
The drought has been described as the worst that Europe has recorded in 500 years: the last major drought, in fact, hit the continent in 1540. The intense heat wave that occurred at that time was very continuous, lasting for 11 months, and resulting in an occurrence of 90-95 days. of rainfall is lower than the average for western and central Europe in the twentieth century. The hydrological drought was just as severe: the flow of rivers such as the Rhino and Elbe decreased by up to 90% and smaller watercourses dried up completely.
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