Country experiences scorching heat fueled by El Nino

ISTANBUL

As Earth enters into a new warming phase following the onset of the El Nino phenomenon, weather patterns are shifting drastically, with Türkiye, as in the rest of the world, witnessing sweltering heat as a result.

The world saw its hottest June on record last month, the EU's climate monitoring service said July 6, as climate change and the El Nino weather pattern looked likely to drive another scorching summer.

On July 4, the world also bore witness to the hottest day ever recorded.

El Nino, the periodic warming of a strip of water along the equator in the Pacific Ocean, caused excessive temperature increase worldwide and also gripped Türkiye.

With the summer season now in full swing, especially the cities in the southeastern region experienced extreme heat.

On July 6, the thermometers in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır showed 44 degrees during midday, prompting residents to seek shelter in shaded areas to protect themselves from the heat. Children found relief by entering the ornamental pools.

In another southeastern city known for high temperatures during the summer months, Mardin, the streets remained deserted as the city's inhabitants refrained from going outside throughout the day. The extreme heat caused asphalt to melt in some parts of the city. In many provinces, including Antalya, people tried to cool off by swimming in the sea.

According to Professor Levent Kurnaz, who serves as the head of the Climate Policy Research Center at Boğaziçi University, it is foreseen that 2023 will be marked as the hottest year ever encountered.

Reminding that despite the extreme heat experienced this month, July does not even mark the peak of summer heat, Kurnaz noted that truly scorching days are yet to come in mid-July and early August, when the temperatures will continue to escalate.

The intensifying El Nino phenomenon will worsen the situation, Kurnaz pointed out, adding that the country might witness new temperature records being shattered each day until mid-August.

“This year, we are expected to exceed the previous highest temperature record in Türkiye. Up until now, we have already observed temperatures reaching 49.1 degrees Celsius, and it is anticipated that we will witness temperatures surpassing the 50-degree mark approximately 10 to 12 times throughout this year,” Kurnaz noted.

Kurnaz emphasized that this is an inevitable consequence of global warming, stressing that such extremes in weather patterns will now become the new normal.

The upcoming winter and spring seasons will also witness temperatures well above the average for those periods, Kurnaz added.