In 2018, several

heat wave A heat wave or heatwave, sometimes described as extreme heat, is a period of abnormally hot weather generally considered to be at least ''five consecutive days''. A heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the area and ...

s with temperatures far above the long-time average and droughts were recorded in the

Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined by humans as being in the same celestial sphere, celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the Solar ...

: The earth's average surface temperature in 2018 was the fourth highest in the 140 years of record keeping.John Schwartz and Nadia Popovich, 'New York Times,' "2018 Continues Warming Trend, As 4th Hottest Year Since 1880," February 7, 2019 p. 1 It is assumed that the

jet stream Jet streams are fast flowing, narrow thermal wind, air currents in the Earth's Atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere. The main jet streams are located near the altitude of the tropopause and are westerly winds, flowing west to east around the gl ...

is slowing down, trapping cloudless, windless and extremely hot regions of

high pressure In science and engineering the study of high pressure examines its effects on materials and the design and construction of devices, such as a diamond anvil cell, which can create high pressure. ''High pressure'' usually means pressures of thousan ...

. The jet stream anomalies could be caused by

polar amplification Polar amplification is the phenomenon that any change in the net radiation balance (for example greenhouse intensification) tends to produce a larger change in temperature near the poles than in the planetary average. This is commonly referred to ...

, one of the observed effects of

global warming Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes ...

. According to the

World Meteorological Organization The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation on atmospheric science, climatology, hydrology an ...

, the severe heat waves across the Northern Hemisphere in the summer of 2018, are linked to

climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...

, as well as events of extreme precipitation. The results were an increase in mortality of the elderly, severe declines in

crop yield In agriculture, the yield is a measurement of the amount of a crop grown, or product such as wool, meat or milk produced, per unit area of land. The seed ratio is another way of calculating yields. Innovations, such as the use of fertilizer, the ...

s, as well as the biggest

algae bloom An algal bloom or algae bloom is a rapid increase or accumulation in the population of algae in fresh water or marine water systems. It is often recognized by the discoloration in the water from the algae's pigments. The term ''algae'' encompass ...

in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

in decades. This had the effect of poisoning water both for human and animal use. Additionally,

nuclear power plant A nuclear power plant (NPP), also known as a nuclear power station (NPS), nuclear generating station (NGS) or atomic power station (APS) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power st ...

s in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

were having issues, because the water in the rivers used for cooling the reactors was too warm. This had the effect of electricity grids crashing in areas on four continents. The impacts were severe, even in some countries that are considered well prepared to deal with the impacts of climate change.

By region

2018 European heat wave The 2018 European drought and heat wave was a period of unusually hot weather that led to record-breaking temperatures and wildfires in many parts of Europe during the spring and summer of 2018. It is part of a larger heat wave affecting the ...

** 2018 British Isles heat wave ***

2018 United Kingdom wildfires Starting on 24 June 2018 and continuing throughout the summer, a record-breaking series of wildfires burned across the United Kingdom. The two largest fires, which were declared major incidents, burned over each and broke out on Saddleworth Moor ...

2018 Sweden wildfires In the summer of 2018, a large number of wildfires (primarily forest fires) occurred throughout much of Sweden. According to the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency, they are the most serious in the country in modern history. The summer was unusu ...

2018 Attica wildfires A series of wildfires in Greece, during the 2018 European heat wave, began in the coastal areas of Attica (region), Attica in July 2018. 104 people were confirmed dead from the Mati fires. The fires were, at that time, the second-deadliest wildfi ...

2018 North American heat wave Eighteen or 18 may refer to: * 18 (number) * One of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018 Film, television and entertainment * ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the short story ''God's Dice'' * ''Eighteen'' (film), a 20 ...

2018 Northeast Asia heat wave Throughout much of July 2018, a record-breaking heat wave affected large areas of Northeast Asia including Japan, North Korea, South Korea and China. Many areas in Japan experienced temperatures in excess of , and Kumagaya recorded a maximum temp ...

References

{{reflist 2018 heat waves

By region

See also

References