PARIS – Europe is baking under a scorching heat wave, with health warnings in place across western and central parts of the continent as temperatures climb to record-breaking highs.
France’s national temperature indicator — an average of daytime and nighttime temperatures across 30 stations — reached 29.8 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, the hottest since measurements began in 1947. In Italy, the health ministry declared a red heat wave alert in 16 cities on Wednesday, including Milan and Rome. In the coming days, the heat wave is expected to extend into eastern Europe.
Among the factors driving these extremes are atmospheric and circulation patterns that keep hot air trapped in place for days, causing the mercury to slowly rise.
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