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Offenbach (dpa) - According to experts, the influence of climate change on the weather in Germany and worldwide is becoming increasingly evident.
According to the German Weather Service (DWD), 2020 was not only the second warmest since weather records began in Germany, but also worldwide.
The sea ice surface in the Arctic reached its second lowest value after 2012 in September 2020, as DWD President Gerhard Adrian, who is also President of the World Meteorological Organization, said on Tuesday at the presentation of the climate data.
An intensification and increase of weather extremes could be observed again worldwide.
In the Sahel region, around the Horn of Africa, as well as in India, Pakistan and China, there was particularly high rainfall in 2020, which regionally was 500 percent above the long-term average.
From January 1 to November 17, 2020, 96 tropical storms were registered worldwide.
In the North Atlantic there were 30 storms, more than twice as many as are typical there.
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In Germany, 2020 was too dry in eight months and too wet in four months, said DWD climate expert Thomas Deutschländer.
As in 2019, eleven of the twelve months were too warm - compared to the reference period 1961-1990.
Even if peak values of more than 40 degrees were not reached as in 2019, the midsummer temperatures combined with drought had a negative impact on agriculture, he emphasized.
"Overall, the past three years have intensified the fears of climate research that we will have to reckon with weather and climate extremes more and more often in the future."
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210309-99-749342 / 2
German Weather Service