Climate change could push Athens temperatures up 3.5C after 2040: Study

By Ahmet Gencturk

ATHENS (AA) – The climate crisis could push temperatures in the Greek capital Athens up 3.5 degrees Celsius (38.3 degrees Fahrenheit) after 2040, according to a new study.

According to the findings of a study by Constantinos Cartalis, a professor of environmental and climate physics at the University of Athens, the average air temperature in the greater capital metropolitan area could rise by more than 3.5 degrees between 2041 and 2070 compared to 1971-2000, due to the combined effects of climate change and the urban heat island phenomenon, the state-run AMNA news agency reported.

Speaking to the agency, Cartalis said Athens is mirroring wider weather trends in the Southeastern Mediterranean and globally, with increased frequency, intensity, and duration of heatwaves owing to human-created global warming over the past 150 years.

Warning that cities are particularly vulnerable to climate change due to the urban "heat island" effect, he said: “This effect results from lower vegetation coverage, higher absorption of solar radiation, and additional heat sources from cars, industry, and buildings.”

As a result, he added: “Urban areas cool down more slowly than rural ones.”​​​​​​​