Austria under high summer heat: up to 36 degrees today!

Austria under high summer heat: up to 36 degrees today!

Österreich - Austria is now facing another heat day at which the temperatures between 27 and 36 degrees Celsius vary. It gets particularly hot in Burgenland, where up to 36 degrees are expected. The temperatures also reach up to 35 degrees in Carinthia and Vienna. About 32 degrees are expected in Innsbruck and Linz, while the Bregenz area is around 28 degrees at the cooler end of this heat wave. The weather forecasts announce a predominantly sunny day, even if there are more source clouds in the mountain country and a slight increase in the gauer and thunderstorm tendency, such as 5min) reported.

For the coming days, however, there is no improvement. On Monday, August 11th, far -reaching sunshine is expected, with a little more clouds over the mountains in the afternoon. The maximum temperatures are then between 25 and 32 degrees. Also on Tuesday it stays warm, especially in the east and southeast of the country, where local heating streak is not excluded over the Hohe Tauern. On Wednesday the heat wave is expected to continue with temperatures of 28 to 35 degrees.

Heat load in Austria

The heat days have increased significantly in recent years. In 2023, only three districts recorded a "very high" heat loading index, while in 2024 there were already 25 districts. This development is alarming, as more and more districts have at least 34 heat days (over 30 degrees Celsius), which represents a significant increase compared to the 15 districts in 2019 [Nachrichten.at] (https://www.nachrichten.at/panorama/chronik/hitze-das-da--heistesten-bezirke-oesterreichs ;art58,4065037).

in Linz, which leads the top with 43 heat days in 2024, there are ten districts in Upper Austria, which recorded at least 34 heat days. The heat letting index also takes into account the proportion of older people, which is particularly relevant in the view of demographic change and the increasing number of seniors (> 65 years). Progonosis shows that 95 % of the districts will have a senior share of over 25 % by 2050 and that each additional heat day increases mortality by 2.4 % per 1,000 inhabitants.

effects of climate change

Climate change not only has an impact on the weather, but also harbors considerable health risks. The increase in heat waves, which include more than three hot days in one week, leads to a triple increase in the death disease compared to individual heat days. The need to act as part of the heat protection is becoming increasingly important to protect the affected population groups, as well as Klima-mensch-gesundheit.de

The heat wave that Austria experiences today is the shortest expression of a changing climate. While the temperatures rise, it is crucial that both public institutions and the population are sensitized to protect themselves from the negative consequences of the heat.