Barcelona faces an episode of particularly intense and prolonged heat during the first half of August, framed in a context of atmospheric instability in northern Europe and rising temperatures throughout the peninsula.
The Servei Meteorològic de Catalunya has already issued the first warning for intense heat for Tuesday in areas of southern Catalonia, and the likelihood that the situation ends in heat wave grows as the week progresses.
Torrid nights and hot days and the worst, a little certain end, which predicts that high temperatures will remain, probably, during the first half of August. We tell you everything you need to be prepared.
First week of heat wave
The week starts with a notable rise in temperatures. From Monday and Tuesday, with highs that will exceed 30 ° C in Barcelona and up to 35 ° C in the warmer areas of inland Catalonia and the Ebro. The result? A particularly uncomfortable sultry atmosphere and really hot afternoons.
Between Wednesday and Thursday the temperature could regulate, but from Thursday and especially facing the weekend, the second great thermal rise is expected, with forecasts that the heat wave will be prolonged without a clear end date, and may last even beyond the feast of the Mare de Déu d’Agost.
With the arrival of the most intense heat also return the torrid nights: minimum temperatures close to or above 25 ° C, bad sleep, sultry and especially hard in the metropolitan area, something that had not happened since July 20. The first particularly difficult night will be from Monday to Tuesday, but by the end of the week the phenomenon is expected to spread and multiply.
What will happen after August 7
Although officially the heat wave could end around August 7, weather models point to a maintenance of intense heat during the following days, without large drops in temperatures.
The atmosphere will remain humid and nights will remain warm, with highs close to 29-31 °C and high lows without nighttime relief, under the influence of the atmospheric stability typical of the Mediterranean anticyclone in August.
The authorities recommend constant hydration, avoiding sun exposure in central hours and the use of weather shelters. Special attention is paid to the most vulnerable groups – the elderly, infants, people with chronic diseases – in this episode of prolonged and sultry heat.