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WEATHER

Heatwave warning sounded for Switzerland

A heatwave is rolling over much of Switzerland this week with temperatures set to rise up to 37 degrees in areas such as the canton of Valais by the end of the week, weather forecasters say.

Published: 22 July 2013 12:40 CEST
Heatwave warning sounded for Switzerland
Photo: Lykaestria

The cities of Zurich, Basel, Aarau and Schaffhausen are expected to see temperatures hitting highs of 31 degrees on Monday, along with Sion in the canton of Valais, according to Meteonews.

The mercury should climb to highs of 30 degrees in Geneva at the western extremity of the country and in Chur, to the east, in the canton of Graubunden, and in Lugano in the canton of Ticino, Meteonews said.

But it will become even warmer toward the end of the week, with seasonal records for heat to be tested in some regions.

The highs for Sion are forecast to reach 35 degrees on Friday and 37 on Saturday.

Mixed into the picture is the likelihood of thunderstorms on Wednesday, with the possibility of hail in some regions.

An anti-cyclone centred in the northwest of Europe is influencing the weather in Switzerland and other countries, such as France, where warnings have gone out to people vulnerable to the heat, especially the elderly and small children.

The warm weather is expected to continue into next week.

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WEATHER

IN PICTURES: ‘Exceptional’ Sahara dust cloud hits Europe

An "exceptional" dust cloud from the Sahara is choking parts of Europe, the continent's climate monitor said on Monday, causing poor air quality and coating windows and cars in grime.

Published: 8 April 2024 14:15 CEST
IN PICTURES: 'Exceptional' Sahara dust cloud hits Europe

Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service said the latest plume, the third of its kind in recent weeks, was bringing hazy conditions to southern Europe and would sweep northward as far as Scandinavia.

Mark Parrington, senior scientist at Copernicus, said the latest event was related to a weather pattern that has brought warmer weather to parts of Europe in recent days.

“While it is not unusual for Saharan dust plumes to reach Europe, there has been an increase in the intensity and frequency of such episodes in recent years, which could be potentially attributed to changes in atmospheric circulation patterns,” he said.

This latest episode has caused air quality to deteriorate in several countries, Copernicus said.

The European Union’s safe threshold for concentrations of PM10 — coarser particles like sand and dust that that can irritate the nose and throat — has already been exceeded in some locations.

A picture taken on April 8, 2024 shows a rapeseed field under thick sand dust blown in from the Sahara, giving the sky a yellowish appearance near Daillens, western Switzerland. – An “exceptional” dust cloud from the Sahara is choking parts of Europe, the continent’s climate monitor said, causing poor air quality and coating windows and cars in grime. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

The worst affected was the Iberian Peninsula in Spain but lesser air pollution spikes were also recorded in parts of Switzerland, France and Germany.

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Local authorities in southeastern and southern France announced that the air pollution threshold was breached on Saturday.

They advised residents to avoid intense physical activity, particularly those with heart or respiratory problems.

The dust outbreak was expected to reach Sweden, Finland and northwest Russia before ending on Tuesday with a shift in weather patterns, Copernicus said.

The Sahara emits between 60 and 200 million tonnes of fine dust every year, which can travel thousands of kilometres (miles), carried by winds and certain meteorological conditions.

The Spanish Canary Islands off the coast of northwest Africa saw just 12 days within a 90-day period from December to February where skies were free of Saharan dust, the local weather agency Aemet had reported.

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