Heat wave in the Mediterranean, the water reaches 30 degrees off the coast of Ravenna.The expert:«Ideal climate for alien species»

Off the coast of Ravenna, on 16 July, 29.9 degrees were reached, while just outside Dubrovnik 29.7

«I'll take a bath to freshen up».Not this year.Due to the prolonged heat wave that has monopolized the weather in the Mediterranean basin for weeks, except for a few brief cold incursions from the north, the Mare Nostrum it is reaching temperatures close to 30 degrees.At least four degrees above average, and at least a month ahead of mid-August, when the waters of the Mediterranean normally reach their peak heat, around 26 degrees.The exact 30 degrees has not yet been measured.The two data making news in these hours are those deriving from the measurement of Arpae and the homologous Croatian agency, both in the upper Adriatic.Off the coast of Ravenna, on 16 July, 29.9 degrees were reached, while just outside Dubrovnik 29.7.The highest ever measured in Croatia, he reports Climate icon.

«The prolonged heat is worrying»

Not only do the figures set new records, but the length of time during which temperatures remain so high, putting biodiversity at risk, is worrying.«The important element is the length of the period in which the water is at high temperatures, because if there are organisms used to being in the Adriatic at 27°, and then suddenly they find themselves living there at 30° for 15 days, then things change", commented al Rest of the Pug the INGV oceanographer Simona Simoncelli.Not only that, high temperatures favor the proliferation of mucilage, which, getting stuck in the nets, forces fishermen to pause their activity.Furthermore, when the water remains too warm for long periods, it favors the migration of alien species typical of tropical climates.

Towards the end of the records?

For the third year in a row temperatures are close to 30 degrees.In 2022 it had been the Tyrrhenian to overcome the psychological threshold, while last year the absolute record of the average temperature of the Mediterranean basin was recorded, with 28.71 degrees centigrade.As predicted by climatologists, therefore, at least as regards the temperatures of the Mare Nostrum, the effects ofexhaustion of El Niño they will not be visible for several months, although ocean temperatures have instead begun a slow decline in view of the cold phase of There Niñto.Experts hope that the latter will break the unbroken temperature record recorded in every month between June 2023 and June 2024.