Europe’s summer is getting longer: Heat now lasts up to 5 months in cities like Athens and Tirana

By&nbspEuronews Green

Published on 06/07/2025 - 11:02 GMT+2

As world temperatures proceed to rise, European cities are experiencing utmost power for acold longer than nan accepted summertime months.

Some cities successful Europe now strengthen precocious temperatures for up to 5 months a year, a caller study by Climate Resilience for All claims.

The analysis, led by nan NGO’s meteorological team, examined somesthesia information from 2019 to 2023 crossed 85 cities worldwide. It focused connected nan first and past days that each metropolis reached 32°C, a period for utmost power that poses superior wellness and biology risks.

They recovered that alleged ‘heat seasons’ are nary longer confined to nan recognised summertime months and are now overmuch longer successful duration. On average, nan team, led by ambiance intelligence Dr Larry Kalkstein, opportunity that power seasons past for 214 days crossed nan cities they looked at.

Extremely basking days occurred astatine immoderate clip of nan twelvemonth successful 20 of nan 85 cities.

Where successful Europe does power play past nan longest?

In Europe, power seasons now agelong good beyond what was erstwhile considered summer.

The study says that Athens successful Greece now faces 1 of nan longest power seasons connected nan continent, pinch precocious temperatures lasting astir 145 days, from mid-May to early October.

Tirana, Albania’s capital, comes successful a adjacent 2nd connected Climate Resilience for All’s database pinch 143 days of utmost heat.

In Portugal, Lisbon’s power play lasts astir 136 days, from precocious outpouring to early autumn. Madrid successful Spain experiences a power play of 119 days, spanning from precocious May to mid-September.

Paris officials are preparing for 4°C of warming, but nan French superior already sees astir 3 months of utmost heat, pinch temperatures supra 32°C from mid-June to mid-September.

Munich and Warsaw person shorter but still important power seasons, lasting astir a period aliases two.

Why are longer power seasons a problem?

Previous investigation has recovered that human-caused ambiance alteration added an mean of 30 days of utmost heat for astir half of nan world’s organization past year. That is 4 cardinal group exposed to prolonged, vulnerable temperatures.

The study by World Weather Attribution, Climate Central and nan Red Cross Climate Centre looked astatine nan play betwixt May 2024 and May 2025. It recovered that ambiance alteration astatine slightest doubled nan number of days classified arsenic “extreme heat” successful 195 of nan 247 countries and territories they analysed compared to nan erstwhile average.

Europe is 1 of nan regions already suffering nan astir visible and deadly consequences of world warming. Extended periods of power item really nan continent’s ambiance is changing and nan wellness and infrastructure concerns which travel pinch that change.

Longer power seasons mean an accrued consequence of heat-related illnesses, starring to an accrued strain connected healthcare systems and challenges for susceptible populations. It is particularly problematic for nan aged and those pinch pre-existing conditions.

"This study makes it clear: we tin nary longer dainty power arsenic conscionable a normal portion of summer," says Kathy Baughman McLeod, CEO of Climate Resilience for All.

“The ‘summer season’ galore of america erstwhile knew is gone.”

Why are cities truthful hot?

The study points to nan urban power island effect, wherever cities go hotter than surrounding agrarian areas owed to dense infrastructure and constricted greenish space, arsenic a cardinal facet worsening power accent crossed Europe’s municipality centres.

“Cities ne'er designed for power now look caller power shocks and stresses,” explains Baughman McLeod.

With power seasons stretching good extracurricular of nan recognised summertime months, governments and metropolis planners look a pressing challenge: really do you protect group from progressively predominant and prolonged heatwaves?

Mitigating nan effect of this extended power threat requires strategies for illustration expanding municipality greenery, improving building designs, designating cool refuge areas and processing informing systems.

But, contempt nan rising threat, governments’ readying and consequence measures for power are, according to Baughman McLeod, either nonexistent aliases woefully inadequate for nan standard of nan crisis.

“It is imperative that we mainstream consciousness and knowing of utmost heat, truthful that governments, businesses, and employers negociate their risks and impacts pinch nan urgency these conditions demand.”