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Record European Heat | Earth Wise

February 13, 2023 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

The new year began with record-breaking heat across Europe.  In fact, on December 31 and January 1, about 5,000 all-time high temperature records for those dates were broken, in some cases by margins of more than 9 degrees Fahrenheit.

On New Year’s Day, eight European countries recorded their warmest January day ever. These were Liechtenstein, the Czech Republic, Poland, the Netherlands, Belarus, Lithuania, Denmark, and Latvia.

Many of the European cities affected by the heat wave would ordinarily be covered in snow at that time of year.  For example, Vaduz, the capital of Liechtenstein, the Czech town of Javornik, and the Polish village of Jodlownik, all recorded peak temperatures between 66 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit.

By the measure of how far above normal temperatures rose, it was the most extreme heat wave in European history.  Last summer saw record-breaking heat waves across much of Europe, but the actual temperature increases over normal were smaller than what just occurred at the beginning of the year.

The source of the exceptional heat was a warm mass of air from the west coast of Africa moving across Europe.  As is the case for any individual weather event, one cannot definitively attribute this one to climate change.  However, it is abundantly clear that because of climate change, extreme weather events of all types are becoming more frequent and more intense.

The unprecedented European weather does have the effect of helping to ease the energy crisis that has gripped the European continent.   The Russian invasion of Ukraine has led to soaring natural gas prices.  The warm weather has meant a lower demand for gas, causing gas prices to drop to their lowest level since the start of the war.

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‘Uncharted territory’: January heat records smashed across Europe

Photo, posted August 13, 2019, courtesy of Herbert Frank via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Renewables Will Overtake Coal | Earth Wise

January 17, 2023 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

According to a recent report by the International Energy Agency, worldwide growth in renewable power capacity is set to double in the next five years.  In fact, by 2027, the world will add as much renewable power as it did over the previous 20 years.

Of particular significance is that renewables are going to overtake coal as the largest source of electricity generation by early 2025.

The global energy crisis triggered by the war in Ukraine has had multiple effects on the evolution of the energy system.  While the war has driven a resurgence in fossil fuel consumption in Europe in order to replace gas from Russia, that resurgence is expected to be short-lived.  Instead, the current energy crisis may turn out to be an historic turning point toward a cleaner and more secure energy system.

Soaring fossil-fuel prices triggered by the war have caused many countries to respond by embracing wind turbines, solar panels, nuclear power plants, hydrogen fuels, electric vehicles, and electric heat pumps.  In the US, Congress approved more than $370 billion in spending for clean energy technologies as part of the Inflation Reduction Act.  China, India, South Korea, and Japan have all increased their national targets for renewable power.   However, heating and cooling buildings with renewable power remains a sector needing larger improvement, according to the energy agency.

Overall, the expansion of renewable power over the next five years is now projected to happen much faster than what was projected just one year ago. The new IEA report revised last year’s forecast for renewables growth by 30% as a result of the introduction of new policies by many of the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitters.

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Renewables Will Overtake Coal by Early 2025, Energy Agency Says

Photo, posted March 8, 2021, courtesy of Stanze via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

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