Global warming in Poland is progressing faster than the world average. The average annual temperatures in our country are almost 2 degrees higher than 70 years ago. “Winters, during which days with negative temperatures prevail, are already rare, and during the day the mercury bar usually rises above zero”, writes Professor Joanna Wibig, climatologist from the Faculty of Geographical Sciences at the University of Łódź (UŁ).

As the Łódź researcher emphasises, the most intense warming is observed in spring and winter, while it is slowest in autumn. In her opinion, the warming has moved us from a zone where days with negative temperatures dominated in winter to one where the temperature is usually positive during the day and only at night does it fall below zero. 

This unfortunately means that snow cover is now rare. It appears after a heavy snowfall and disappears after a few days. “Such situations are repeated many times during the season,” says Prof. Wibig and adds that warming is also evident in the summer. The average temperature of the summer months has risen by more than 1.5 degrees C. 

Many of us enjoy the heat as long as it is not excessive. Unfortunately, heat waves, i.e. periods with a maximum temperature of more than 30 degrees C per day, are becoming more frequent, longer and more intense. “In central Poland, the number of hot days has almost tripled over the past 50 years”, notes a climatologist from the University of Łódź.

As a result, warming has resulted in a significant shortening of winter and lengthening of summer. The length of the other seasons has not changed significantly, but pre-winter and spring start and end earlier, while autumn and pre-winter start and end later. “And this means a lengthening of the growing season, a very important period for farmers and fruit growers”, emphasises Prof Wibig.

Adrian Andrzejewski