Switzerland sees warmest February since records began in 1864
The month has not yet come to a close, but experts say February 2024 is set to be the warmest since records began way back in 1864.
The first half of February was extremely mild, with excess temperatures of between 3 and 7C, according to the MeteoNews weather service.
Overall, the average temperature was found to be nearly 5C higher than the 30-year average for this time of year.
"This past February will go down in the weather books as clearly the mildest February since records began in 1864, with a current excess of 4.9C cross the whole of Switzerland," said Roger Perret of MeteoNews in a statement. He added that the previous record of 4.1C over the average was recorded in February 1990.
Perret said the temperatures were higher in the east than in the west, with temperatures locally exceeding 6C above the average.
When it comes to measuring stations, February was the mildest since measurements began in many places in Switzerland, but not everywhere. In Geneva, for instance, February 2020 was slightly milder, while the temperatures recorded in February 1998 in and in Säntis were also warmer than this year.
Perret described this year's February as "rather spring-like".
The result of this is that vegetation is "much more advanced than usual at this time of year".
Peach and apricot trees are already flowering, around two to three weeks earlier than usual.
READ ALSO: What's the outlook for spring in Switzerland?
However, if there is frost in March, which is a frequent occurrence in Europe, there is a risk of that these early blossoms will freeze.
Despite the mild temperatures, MeteoNews said there had been too much rain in the south of Switzerland for this time of year, and too little sunshine.
"In terms of sunshine duration, there has been a small deficit of around 13 percent across the whole of Switzerland so far in February," said Perret.
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The first half of February was extremely mild, with excess temperatures of between 3 and 7C, according to the MeteoNews weather service.
Overall, the average temperature was found to be nearly 5C higher than the 30-year average for this time of year.
"This past February will go down in the weather books as clearly the mildest February since records began in 1864, with a current excess of 4.9C cross the whole of Switzerland," said Roger Perret of MeteoNews in a statement. He added that the previous record of 4.1C over the average was recorded in February 1990.
Perret said the temperatures were higher in the east than in the west, with temperatures locally exceeding 6C above the average.
When it comes to measuring stations, February was the mildest since measurements began in many places in Switzerland, but not everywhere. In Geneva, for instance, February 2020 was slightly milder, while the temperatures recorded in February 1998 in and in Säntis were also warmer than this year.
Perret described this year's February as "rather spring-like".
The result of this is that vegetation is "much more advanced than usual at this time of year".
Peach and apricot trees are already flowering, around two to three weeks earlier than usual.
READ ALSO: What's the outlook for spring in Switzerland?
However, if there is frost in March, which is a frequent occurrence in Europe, there is a risk of that these early blossoms will freeze.
Despite the mild temperatures, MeteoNews said there had been too much rain in the south of Switzerland for this time of year, and too little sunshine.
"In terms of sunshine duration, there has been a small deficit of around 13 percent across the whole of Switzerland so far in February," said Perret.
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