Extreme heat and drought in Southern Europe

As reported in the latest USDA Crop Bulletin, Europe is facing a marked weather situation this summer. The south of the continent suffers from intense heat waves, while the north experiences colder temperatures and periods of rain. This climatic divergence has significant impacts on agricultural crops in the region. Temperatures for the week averaged 3 to 7°C above normal from central and southern Spain to Greece and the Balkans. Maximum daytime temperatures routinely exceeded 35°C in these same farmlands, with marks of 40°C or higher recorded in central and southern Spain (reaching as high as 45°C), the southern half of Italy (peaking 42°C C) and western Greece (43°C). The impacts of the heat wave were varied. In Spain, sunflowers and irrigated cotton grown in the south were subjected to significant heat stress; in Andalusia, daily highs have reached or exceeded 38°C in 25 days since 15 June, while there have been 9 days with highs of 42°C or more since 25 June. In contrast, the ...