Global Temperature Anomalies: Last year’s summer was especially determined by high temperatures. Not only the northern Hemisphere but also the southern hemisphere was affected by heat and striking temperature anomalies. What will undoubtedly be remembered for a while, and for which the summer of 2023 became very well known in the media, was that the average temperatures in the northern hemisphere summer months of June, July and August were the highest since records began in 1880. In other words, the summer season of 2023 was the warmest on record globally. Further, other global records had been broken during this northern hemispheric summer. Let’s have a closer look:
Warmest June on record: According to the NOAA, June 2023 was the warmest June month since records began, based on global surface temperatures. This month can be described as extraordinarily hot and rich in precipitation. It was one of the June months with the highest global amount of precipitation ever measured. In addition, NOAA investigated the ocean surface temperature and claimed a new June record for this variable. For the third month in a row, the global ocean surface temperature hit a record high with El Nino as an additional factor.
The weather maps well show the above-described anomalies.
Canadian Wildfires: Even though the wildfires in Canada started back in May, they have intensified considerably since then and gained global attention. Although wildfires in Canada are not uncommon and normal at this time of year, the scale of destruction was enormous. To be more precise, the 2023 Canadian wildfires will be remembered as the most devastating and long-lasting wildfires in the country's history. We already reported on the fires in Nova Scotia, east of the country, at the end of May. A few weeks later, we published an update focusing on the east coast of the United States, where the soot particles resulted in entirely overcast skies and poor air quality. Towards the end of the month, our weather news was once again dedicated to the Canadian wildfires, but this time, it was due to the arriving soot particles in Europe.
In summary, the 2023 Canadian wildfire season started much earlier and lasted longer than usual. The severe drought in the east of the country favored the initial spread of the fires, which were partly natural (e.g. due to lightning strikes) but more often caused by human misconduct.
meteoblue offers a way to identify current wildfires of any kind using various weather maps.
These maps can be found under the “Air Quality & Pollen” section. For example, high concentrations of CO, PM2.5 and PM10 (particulate matter) as well as high values of AOD (Aerosol Optical Depth) and the Air Quality Index (CAQI) indicate wildfires. In combination with our satellite map, you can visually track the smoke generation from the ground and its distribution through local and large-scale atmospheric weather patterns.
Saharan dust and volcanic eruption:
During June 2023, we reported about massive Saharan dust movements over the Atlantic towards America, an event not uncommon and also highly important for the nutrient balance of many rainforests in South America.
Another example of an appropriate use of our weather maps are Vulcanic eruptions such as the eruption of Mount Etna in Sicily at the beginning of August. Our satellite images show how the dust cloud is moving to the south. You can also track the dust cloud in our satellite maps archive, which becomes available with our point+ subscription. In addition to water vapor, sulphurous compounds, CO2 and CO are emitted. Such outbreaks can, therefore, also be seen on different weather maps.
