Extreme heat on weekends, worsening drought

A year of suffering: June 2021 was a record dry month, very lacking in rainfall, 365 days have passed and the situation has worsened further with an extreme drought in northern Italy and Tuscany in the long term and Lazio, Puglia and Calabria in the last months. In summary, the drought that has dominated the northern regions for several months is also spreading to the Center-South. The rainfall that occurred between late April and May, and a few thunderstorms in the last few days, brought only minimal relief to the ground and only temporarily increased the levels of rivers and lakes. However, thanks to the high temperatures, associated with 4 heat waves from 10 May onwards, these few rains have evaporated: the agricultural sector is severely affected, with the irrigated areas affected for over 40% by severe-extreme drought, as reported by the ” CNR Drought Observatory. To solve this situation in Piedmont alone, 60 to 100 cubic meters of water would be needed, the level of Lake Maggiore has dropped by 1 meter in a few days and the lake is suffering with a degree of filling of 22, 7%. The forecasts for the next few days, after some severe thunderstorms expected in the next 18 hours in the North, unfortunately indicate sun and extreme heat. During the weekend, the anticyclone Caronte will begin its climb towards maximum power, expected between Sunday and next Tuesday.Antonio Sanò, director and founder of the site www.iLMeteo.it, expects record temperatures from North to South for the month of June: after the south has already experienced widespread 40 ° C in the shade, the heat wave will also expand towards the Center-North with a possible 40 ° C especially from Monday onwards. No one excluded, the whole boot will be very hot and unfortunately the presence of Charon will be record-breaking also for its persistence: the anticyclone could last until the first days of July, overwhelming with African temperatures and with only some temporary failure in the North. of the thunderstorms expected in the next few hours it must be reiterated how all this heat arriving from North Africa becomes ‘fuel’ for the formation of violent storms: this is the downside of African heat waves, which at the slightest humid puff less hot, favor storms and hail. From tomorrow, however, as mentioned, with the maximum power of Charon, we will have more stable conditions with heat everywhere and temperatures increasing by up to 5 degrees: extreme maximums of 40 ° C in the Center-North and 45 ° C in the inland areas of the South. We will see, the conclusion is that today’s rains will not mitigate the drought because they are violent, localized and unable to infiltrate the soil well; the heat from tomorrow will instead evaporate the little rain that arrived in the North, we therefore expect, and we say it reluctantly, a worsening in the next 10 days of the drought situation in Italy. forts from the western Alps to the adjacent plains. In the center: warm, but sometimes cloudy skies. In the South: unbearable heat, first peaks over 42 ° C. Saturday 25. In the North: irregular clouds in the Northwest, isolated rainfall, sunshine elsewhere. In the Center: some rain in Sardinia, irregular clouds elsewhere. In the South: scattered clouds, warm weather. Sunday 26. In the North: sunny and very muggy, rising heat. In the Center: good and warm weather with peaks of 38-40 ° C in the Sardinian inland areas. In the South: oppressive heat, peaks over 42 ° C. Trend. Charon inflames the center-south with peaks of up to 43-45 ° C, diffused heat in the north; the super heat could last until the beginning of July.