The weather in the future in Tenerife, we cannot predict it, and what climate change will bring is still unclear.
The Canary Islands are likely to be hit harder by climate change than other parts of the world. The islands have a subtropical climate and it is pleasant both in summer and winter. A rise in temperature over the past few decades by about 1.5 degrees Celsius has led to more extreme weather conditions, such as extended periods of drought, heat waves and exuberant rainfall.
If global warming is not stopped, climate change will also affect the Canary Islands. Average temperatures could rise by another 2.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century. This will not only impact humans, but also nature. A number of plants and animals are unable to adapt to the rapidly changing meteorological conditions and this will undoubtedly lead to the extinction of these species.
Water vapour is the cause
The European organisation Copernicus Climate Change Service and the World Meteorological Organisation have warned that July 2023 has seen the highest temperatures since meteorological records have been kept. The trend is clear, June 2023 has already broken all records of the warmest month since temperatures have been measured and the Canary Islands are no exception.
In the Canary archipelago, the temperature rise is expected to be greater in higher areas than on the coasts. This is due to the change in atmospheric conditions and global warming, which produces more water vapour, which is the main greenhouse gas in the Canary Islands (and not CO2, ed.).
Climate and meteorology
Meteorology is the weather in time and place or in other words, what weather is expected at 3pm tomorrow in Plaza de España in Santa Cruz. Climate is the average temperature over a 30-year period. When we talk about climate trends, we are talking about these average values of meteorological criteria.
In addition to the changes in average temperatures in the Canary Islands, another effect is noticeable in the archipelago and pointed to by scientists – less precipitation. This is more difficult to measure because precipitation behaviour is not as homogeneous as that of temperature. Higher areas can expect more precipitation in the future, significantly more than in coastal areas.
Strategies
The changes described above seem unstoppable. Therefore, governments are beginning to study the impact of these changes on each economic sector to adapt, for instance in tourism or in water supply for livestock, agriculture and horticulture.
The thermal coughs that will bring us heat stress in the coming years, especially during the summer period in the south of the two largest islands, will not be so idyllic. All these elements must be brought together to seek strategies to protect the Canary Islands’ tourism economy.
Pixaby © Photography
The weather in the future ©
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