Each summer, the heat is a little earlier and settles a little longer, redrawing the pace of the seasons in France. Records are now falling at a disturbing pace and extreme episodes follow one another without giving nature to nature and residents to recover. While the country faces a new episode of exceptional magnitude, the heat wave in France reveals the extent of the climatic tensions to which it will be necessary to get used to it.
This situation is explained by the rise in a mass of hot air from an ex-tropical time, Dexter, which intensified temperatures over the southern half and extended the heat to the north. Ouest-France reports that this Monday, August 11 could remain as the hottest day of the year, with peaks close to 42 ° C in certain regions. The tropical nights, where the temperature does not drop below 20 ° C, more complicate the recovery of the organism.
The probable duration of the heat wave in France according to experts
Forecasts indicate that high temperatures will be maintained at least until the middle of next week. Météo-France plans that the days of Monday and Tuesday will remain the hottest nationwide, but that the heat will persist in the south long after this period. The southwest regions and the Rhône valley should still know several days above 35 ° C, with locally peaks exceeding 40 ° C.
According to the Ministry of Ecological Transition, current atmospheric conditions, combined with already dried soil, promote the maintenance of a high temperature. The southern half could thus remain in a marked heat until the end of August, with a probability of new peaks around the third week. Specialists emphasize that the duration of such an episode depends as much on the air masses as on the soil capacity to restore the accumulated heat.
After the heat wave, what climatic risks for the end of the season
The gradual attenuation of heat does not exclude the appearance of other meteorological threats. When the fresher air will meet the hot air masses still present, the risk of violent thunderstorms could increase, especially in the center and the east of the country. This type of transition can generate intense and localized precipitation, accompanied by gusts of wind.
In the south, extreme drought strengthens the danger of forest fires. The forest weather indicates a high level of risk very high in the Mediterranean periphery and in the Rhône valley. The drying up of the floors, already close to the historically low levels observed in previous droughts, should be extended. These conditions could become more frequent in the decades to come, with longer waves of heat and more intense each summer.