Table 2.
Long-term climatic trends in Europe, based on data from PRUDENCE* (Prediction of Regional scenarios and Uncertainties for Defining EuropeaN Climate change risks and Effects; Christensen, 2005).
| Parameter | Trend |
|---|---|
| Air temperature | Rise in air temperature |
| Winter temperature | Milder winters |
| Seasonal variation | Less seasonal variation |
| Drought stress | Higher drought stress |
| Forest fires | More forest fires |
| Night-time temperatures (frost) | Warmer night-time temperatures |
| Heat waves | More days of extreme heat and heat waves in summer, and more year-to-year variability |
| Very hot summers | Unusually hot summers more frequent |
| Rainfall | Rainfall: increase in the North and decline in the South |
| Snow | Snow: decline |
| Floods | Floods: more frequent |
| Strong winds | Higher frequency of hurricanes/cyclones |
| (hurricanes/cyclones) | with extreme strength |
*PRUDENCE was a project funded by the European Commission under its fifth framework programme. It had 21 participating institutions from a total of 9 European countries. For further information, see PRUDENCE: http://prudence.dmi.dk/