Head of Russian meteorological service: Russia's climate is warming faster than in the rest of the world

1. Alexander Dybin

Data on climate warming are presented in a new report by Roshydromet. According to the head of the department, Igor Shumakov, in recent years, the average temperature in our country has been 1.17 times higher than in the pre-industrial era.

“The last 7 years are the warmest for Russia,” Shumakov said, “it should be noted that 90% of the accumulated heat is stored in the ocean, and the warming rate has shown an increase over the past two decades. The number of water-related disasters is on the rise. It is noted that the average annual surface temperature will be 1.1-1.7 degrees higher than pre-industrial levels. The probability that at least one year in the next five years will be warmer than the warmest year 2016 exceeds 90%. The territory of Russia is warming faster than the planet as a whole. Temperatures in the polar region are rising, sea ice is shrinking, permafrost is degrading, and climate change is about to get worse".

Director of the main geophysical observatory. A.I. Voeikov Vladimir Kattsov noted that the territory of Russia is warming faster than the rest of the planet by more than 2.5 times. The expert connected this with the vast territory of the country. At the same time, the warming trend cannot be reversed in the coming years.

“We need to consider two perspectives, in the short term, due to inertia, we do not have the ability to stop warming in the coming decades, but the second half of the 21st century depends on what we are doing now,” he said. - We are talking about a low-carbon economy and so on. These measures may be effective in the future. There is a huge uncertainty, but in the near future it will be necessary to adapt and adapt. The realization of this fact did not come immediately, but it did come. Russia has a great adaptive potential, we have not only negative consequences, but also positive ones. We cannot say that we are happy that the climate is changing, but it is necessary to use the positive.”

Leading Researcher of the Main Geophysical Observatory named after V.I. A.I. Voeikova Elena Akentieva noted that warming brings completely different effects for the economy and life, from savings on heating to the risks of overheating nuclear reactors.

“Due to the rise in temperature, the duration of the growing season is increasing, there is an opportunity to grow more productive crops, but the ranges of pests that have not previously been found in the northern regions are also expanding. There is a danger of aridity in the south of the European territory, the Urals and Western Siberia, - the expert said, - the heating period is reduced from 20 to 40 days, we can save on heating, but air conditioning costs are rising. At thermal and nuclear power plants there are risks of overheating, problems with cooling systems due to rising water and air temperatures. Warming looks beneficial for construction, but frequent temperature transitions through zero reduce the durability of buildings, and atmospheric loads increase.”