Turkey braces for hotter-than-usual September

ANKARA: Turkey is poised to experience above-average temperatures in September this year, following a summer plagued by a series of heat waves attributed to climate change, according to scientists.

Levent Kurnaz, director of the Center for Climate Change and Policy Studies at Istanbul's Bogazici University, cautioned that the El Nino effect is expected to elevate temperatures to unprecedented levels this month, Xinhua news agency reported.

"In Turkey, the peak of summer heat typically occurs at the end of July and the first week of August, followed by a cooling trend. However, September this year is likely to be notably warmer than usual," Kurnaz told local media. El Nino is a climate pattern that occurs every few years in the Pacific Ocean. It is characterized by the warming of surface waters in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. This warming causes changes in weather patterns around the world, including changes in rainfalls, temperatures, and storms.

"We anticipate significantly higher temperatures in 2024 compared to this year, with the potential for daily temperature records to be broken regularly," stated the scientist.

The warming weather has also led to severe rainstorms in certain regions of the country, resulting in loss of life and property. As of Wednesday night, flash floods in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, and the neighboring province of Kirklareli had claimed at least seven lives, with more than 30 others injured.

"Hot weather and climate change are to blame for such weather events," said Dilek Caliskan, a meteorological expert with the private NTV news channel.

August witnessed exceptionally high temperatures in Turkey this year, marked by multiple heat waves that pushed temperatures to 45 degrees Celsius in southern regions and 40 in the capital Ankara. Meanwhile, droughts are becoming more frequent and severe in Turkey, impacting major cities like Istanbul and Ankara, which are grappling with rising temperatures. The climate crisis is also significantly affecting agricultural production in Turkey. In another worrying development linked to climate change, Turkish scientists have documented the rapid retreat of glacial ice on one of the nation's highest peaks.

A late July research conducted by Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa Faculty of Engineering in the glacier of Mount Cilo, located in the southeastern province of Hakkari, revealed alarming levels of ice melt, as reported by private Haberturk news channel. The glaciers on Mount Cilo are crucial water sources for many cities and irrigation in the surrounding agricultural plains. Continued glacial retreat threatens water supplies for millions downstream in the coming decades, according to researchers. IANS

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