Decades-long heatwaves may hit Europe as climate change bites

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Buckle up. Europe is in for a bumpy ride as climate change gathers pace. The continent could in future swing between climate extremes, including bursts of super-heatwaves that last for decades, according to an analysis of temperature data from the past 2000 years.

The study, which used tree ring data and other proxies for temperature, is the most detailed look at historical temperatures ever conducted for any continent.

Ominously, the analysis uncovered much higher variability between decades than we previously thought. This suggests that models based on our current understanding of climate may be underestimating just how extreme future climate events are likely to be.

This means that Europe may undergo sustained temperature deviations from the continental average that last for decades, says Luterbacher. We may be at even greater risk than previously feared of a repeat of the super-heatwave that hit Europe in 2003, which lead to the death of some 60,000 people.