Summer is heating up: Now these heat records are shaking

This sweating heat breaks all records! We have been panting under extremely high temperatures for days. The new German heat record was measured on Friday! And if this continues, the embers could break many more records.

German heat record broken

At 41.3 degrees Celsius Saarbrücken-Burbach secured the new top spot on Friday, trumping the previous record holder by 0.1 degrees, which was measured on July 25, 2019 in Tönisvorst and Duisburg-Baerl (North Rhine-Westphalia). Graduate meteorologist Dominik Jung: “Particularly remarkable: the old record was from midsummer, the new one was set at the end of June.” The previous June record for Germany was also measured in 2019: 39.6 degrees in Bernburg an der Saale. Jung: “This was also exceeded at 18 other stations.”

The front runner is in Death Valley

However, we are still a long way from the European or world record: for Europe it is Heat Tip at 48.8 degrees, measured on August 11, 2021 in Syracuse, Sicily (Italy). Worldwide, however, Death Valley in California (USA) takes the lead – and has held the record for almost 113 years: 56.7 degrees Celsius in Furnace Creek Ranch. Both dates were provided by the World Organization for Meteorological (WMO) officially recognized. However, the world record is considered controversial: meteorologists doubt the exact measurement of the value from over a century ago. Death Valley would still be in first place even if it were withdrawn: 54.4 degrees were measured there in August 2020 and July 2021.

Meteorologist: June remarkably hot

So there have already been extremely hot phases worldwide. Dominik Jung: “In my opinion, what makes the current heat wave unique in Europe is its dimension in June: the hottest day since measurements began was recorded in France at 44.3 degrees, and in Great Britain it was hottest day in June at all, and the records tumbled in practically all Western European countries.”

But for all of these records to fall, it would have to stay this hot. And that’s probably not what anyone wants right now…