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January 4, 2023

Anna Murray 

Although the year 2023 has only just begun, Europe has already broken an alarming number of meteorological records as extreme heat spread across the continent. Many European countries experienced their warmest January day ever on New Year's Day.

The German capital set a January record of 16° Celsius (60.8° Fahrenheit) on January 1. Northern Spain and southern France rejoiced in beach weather, with Bilbao recording its hottest January day ever at 24.9° Celsius (76.8 Fahrenheit). Furthermore, the capital of Liechtenstein, Vaduz, hit 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit), and the Czech town of Javornik reached 19.6 degrees Celsius (67.3 degrees Fahrenheit), and Jodownik, a village in Poland, reached 19 degrees Celsius (66.2 degrees Fahrenheit).

According to meteorologist Maximiliano Herrera, who monitors extreme temperatures around the world, this is the most extreme heat wave in European history. The occurrence is undoubtedly caused by climate change.

Following Europe's unprecedented warm winter weather, most of the Alps does not appear appropriate for this time of year. Switzerland experienced its highest-ever January temperatures north of the Alps over the New Year's weekend, with thermometers reaching 20.2 degrees Celsius (68.4 degrees Fahrenheit) in the town of Delemont, the capital of the Jura region in northwest Switzerland, which borders France.