Human-caused climate change drove Europe's record heatwave

Human-caused climate change is unequivocally responsible for the intensity of the record-breaking heatwave currently affecting Europe, scientists from the World Weather Attribution (WWA) said in a study published today.

They also found that temperatures of this magnitude would have been virtually impossible 50 years ago, CE Report quotes STA.

Scientists from Europe, the United States, and the United Kingdom warned in the study that extreme weather events such as heatwaves are becoming more frequent and more intense, and that limiting global warming is essential to preventing the worst impacts of climate change.

Heatwave extreme by every measure

The study found that the current heatwave is extreme even when compared with 2003, when heat-related conditions contributed to the deaths of tens of thousands of people across Europe. According to the study, a similar heatwave in June 2003 would have been about 2°C cooler, while in June 1976 it would have been around 3.5°C cooler.

In light of these findings, the study's lead author, Theodore Keeping of Imperial College London, said the world is now warmer and that such June temperatures would not have been possible without climate change.

Solutions exist, but action is too slow

"We are now really facing the question of what kind of future we want and whether we are willing to do everything necessary to secure it," said Friederike Otto, co-founder of the World Weather Attribution initiative.

The WWA also called for a rapid phase-out of fossil fuels, saying it is essential if even higher temperatures are to be avoided in the future.

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