Rate of extreme weather events increasing, Bulgarian meteorologist says

Posted by admin on Mar 23, 2012 in Blog | 0 comments

The winter that held Bulgaria in a prolonged icy and snowy grip may briefly clutch the country in a parting grip towards the end of March, but after that the weather for the rest of spring seems promising.

Valeri Spiridonov, deputy director of the National Institute of Meteorology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, said that arguably for the past 60 years, there had not been a winter like the one past, with heavy snowfalls and prolonged periods of sub-zero temperatures.

It was not a question of record-low temperatures having been set but the fact that the country had gone for so long periods in winter without cycles of warming and cooling, he said.

He said that in recent years, the rate of extreme weather events had been increasing, such as very high temperatures in summer, and the current unusually warm weather for this time of March.

In most parts of Bulgaria, recent days have seen maximum temperatures of about 20 degrees Celsius and in some places, record-high temperatures for the time of year have been set.

The weather forecast for most parts of the country for March 24 is for maximum highs of about 20 degrees, including in Sofia. But the following two days are expected to bring a dropping of temperatures accompanied by rain.

Spiridov said that March was expected to end with a slight reduction in temperatures, but the rest of spring would be stable and pleasant weather.

At the end of March, minimum temperatures would fall to about zero, and there could even be light snow in some parts of the country, but this would winter’s “last gasp,” Spiridov said.

He said that currently, the warmer temperatures should not be interpreted to mean that summer had begun.