Europe Impacted by Worst Drought Since 2003

First Posted: Aug 20, 2015 05:29 PM EDT

It's not just California that's dealing with a drought. Much of the European continent has also been impacted by severe drought in June and July 2015, one of the worst since the drought and heat wave of summer of 2003.

Satellite imagery and modelling has revealed that the drought, caused by prolonged rainfall shortage since April, had already affected soil moisture content and vegetation conditions in June. In addition, the areas with the largest rainfall deficits also recorded exceptionally high maximum daily temperatures. In some cases, these reached record values.

Another characteristic of this period was the persistence of the thermal anomalies. In the entire Mediterranean region, and particularly in Spain, the heat wave was even longer than that of 2003, with maximum daily temperatures consistently over 86 degrees Fahrenheit for durations of 30 to 35 days.

So far, many environmental and production sectors have suffered due to water restrictions, agricultural losses, disruptions to inland water transport, increased wildfires, and threats to forestry, energy production, and human health.

Currently, rainfall is urgently needed in order to offset the negative impacts of the 2015 drought situation.

The announcement reveals that when it comes to drought, many areas of the world are being impact. This shows the importance of water security and taking steps in order to ensure that security.

You can find the full report about the drought online.

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TagsDrought, Rain, Climate, Climate Change, Climate Models, Europe, Agriculture, Water