About 40% of the continent is in moderate to severe drought at the end of July.

Around 40% of mainland Portugal experienced moderate to severe meteorological drought at the end of July, the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) indicated in its climate bulletin for last month.

According to a document published this Monday, the southern region has seen an increase in the area of ​​moderate and severe meteorological drought, affecting the areas of Faro, Beja, Évora, Setúbal and Portalegre.

According to IPMA, July in mainland Portugal was classified as hot in terms of air temperatures and normal in terms of rainfall.

It was the ninth hottest July since 2000, with an average temperature of 23.15 degrees Celsius (°C), 0.65°C higher than the average recorded between 1981 and 2010.

The minimum temperature was the eighth highest since 2000, at 16.12°C, 0.28°C above normal. The maximum temperature, with an average of 30.17°C, was also an anomaly of +1.02°C above normal.

In terms of precipitation, it was the eighth wettest July since 2000. IPMA recalls that minimum temperatures were well below normal early in the month, particularly on the 7th and 8th, and that the 23rd was the hottest day of the year.

According to IPMA, Europe’s average temperature was 1.49°C above the 1991-2020 average, making July the second hottest on record after July 2010.

Temperatures above the 1991-2020 average were recorded in southern and eastern Europe, heatwaves were recorded in countries including Italy and Greece, and night-time temperatures in Athens were around 30°C, well above the 20°C criterion that defines a tropical night.

Northern Europe had a wetter-than-average month, with heavy rain causing flooding in some Baltic countries.