A red weather alert is in effect, meaning the weather is "very dangerous". This one heat wave, in addition to hot days, also brings tropical nights.
Today will be sunny and extremely hot weather across the country. The minimum temperature will be from 13 to 23 degrees, while the maximum daily values will go from an incredible 37 to 41 degrees. In Belgrade, it will be a hellish 38 degrees with a tropical night where the temperature will not drop below 23 degrees.
Peak in the region
Red and orange warnings are also in force in the rest of Europe.
It will be the warmest in Central Europe, in the area of the Pannonian Plain and in the northwest of the Balkans. The highest level of high temperature warning is in effect throughout the territory of Hungary, in most of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
We expect very warm and sunny weather tomorrow, while from Friday there will be a slight drop in temperature, with conditions for local showers and thunderstorms across the region.
Maximum temperature for the weekend up to 35 degrees in most places.
What is a heat wave?
Science says there is no universal definition of a heat wave that applies to all parts of the world. In the simplest terms – a heat wave is a long period of abnormally high temperatures. However, what is considered an abnormally high temperature depends on the location, the climatic averages for the observed area and the time of year.
This means that the same air temperature value measured at two locations can be interpreted quite differently.
For example, temperatures of 33 degrees Celsius represent an extreme departure from normal values in Northern Europe, while these temperatures may be quite normal in much warmer climates. Even within a country, a temperature that is extreme for one area may not be equally unusual in another.
This is precisely why meteorological services use different criteria for evaluating extreme heat, depending on the purpose and characteristics of the area. They can take into account how much the temperature deviates from normal values, how long such conditions last, and in some systems, other factors important for risk assessment.
When it comes to Serbia, the RHMZ states as one of the criteria for a heat wave "daily maximum air temperature significantly above the normal value for the observed day in the period from May 1 to September 30". This criterion makes it possible to assess how unusual the temperatures are for a specific place and time of year.
This means that the heat wave does not necessarily affect all of Serbia in the same way. Depending on the local climatic conditions, it is possible that the temperatures represent a marked deviation in the southwest of the country, while in the southeast they do not represent an equally pronounced anomaly.
Only in August: Save three thousand dinars on the annual subscription to the digital edition of "Vremena"! _Take advantage of the discount here and support independent journalism.
