France: last abnormally hot day to conclude a record year 2022

The dry bed of Lac des Brenets, July 22, 2022. © AFP/Fabrice Coffrini

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Heat records until the very last hours of the year.

This Saturday, December 31 promises to be the mildest ever recorded by Météo France, like a year 2022 emblematic of climate change.

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It could be up to 23°C in Dax, the spa town of Landes in the south-west of France, and this Saturday morning, the thermometer was pointing to 16° in the capital. 

With an average temperature forecast of 16°C for the northern half of the country and 18 for the south, this December 31 promises to be the hottest ever recorded since the start of measurements by Météo France in 1947. 

Conveyor belt

The heat surplus across the country could exceed 8°C.

In 75 years, such a "

" temperature anomaly has only been recorded three times.

► 

 The year 2022 is the hottest ever recorded in France

Low pressures hovering over the Atlantic Ocean push southerly winds out of Africa, carrying heat to France like a “

,” in the words of climate researcher Davide Faranda.

“

” specifies Gerhard Krinner, director of research at the Institute of Geosciences and the Environment of the CNRS.

But climate change linked to human activities has already caused global warming of more than 1°C and the subtropical air that arrives in France is much warmer than before.

Negative consequences for ecosystems

"

", sums up the climatologist.

And even if the populations suffer less from the mild winter than from the heat wave, its negative consequences, in particular for species and ecosystems, are multiple.

►Also listen:

 Heat peaks in France: “We will have a slightly warmer and drier winter,” says Françoise Vimeux 

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