Worst drought in Mediterranean Spain since 1912
Worst drought since 1912
According to director general of water of the Ministry of the Environment, Jaime Palop, Mediterranean Spain is suffering the worst drought since 1912. (El Mundo)
Noticias en ‘Extreme weather Spain’
March 26th, 2008Spanish drought worsens
Spain is suffering its worst drought in the October-March semester for 60 years, with a national average of just 177 mm compared to the normal value of 316 mm. Only the unlikely event of very heavy rains over the next two weeks would save the period from beating the record. The prolonged drought over the last three years is the worst since reliable records began.
El Mundo
Drought in Catalonia
Worst drought in Catalonia for 70 years with little rain expected till April (El Pais)
The 1938 aurora borealis in Barcelona
I came across this remarkable event while reading about Barcelona in the Civil War
The “aurora borealis” is a luminescent meteor, a phenomenon that frequently happens in areas close to the North Pole and which can also be seen in rather exceptional circumstances in regions of Central Europe. So the aurora borealis that could quite clearly be seen from the Pyrenees, and even from the top of the Tibidabo hill in Barcelona, on the 25th of January 1938, was an absolutely unusual occurrence. It was in fact a unique experience. There are no known accounts of any other event of that kind at such meridional latitudes. Furthermore, the phenomenon took place in the midst of war, thus causing terrible confusion and shock among the soldiers who were fighting on the Aragonese front.
From THE REPUBLICAN YEARS (www.bcn.es) by J. Fabre, J.M. Huertas and. Pradas
Worst storms in Valencia’s history
With torrential rains and several deaths from storms in Valencia and Alicante in the last few weeks, it is worth remembering that the Mediterranean coast is characterised by extreme weather events in autumn and has always suffered from flooding, though year’s events have been grossly aggravated by building on flood plains and near dry river beds.
There have been 59 important floods in the last six centuries. This year is the 50 anniversary of 1957 flood (14/Oct), the worst in the 20th century, which caused 81 deaths, 52 of which were in the Valencian capital, as the River Turia burst its banks. 1,131,000 tonnes of mud had to be removed from the city. More from the great Alfred Picó.
But also seems that in recent years these extreme events have become more frequent because of climate change.
Snow in Barcelona
Snow falls on average just over once a year in Barcelona, though it sticks less than one in every ten. These photos are testament to the remarkable snowfall of 25 December 1962, the heaviest in living memory. More on Barcelona
