2020 was one of the warmest in Hungary in the past 120 years
In Hungary, the weather was much warmer than usual, but the amount of precipitation was average in 2020, the Hungarian Meteorological Information Services (OMSZ) stated in its analysis submitted to MTI. Overall, 2020 was 1.2 °C warmer than the average for the period between 1981-2010, ranking sixth in the temperature ranking since 1901, finishing just next to 2000.
24 writes that the domestic temperature conditions of 2020 thus fit the global warming trend. OMSZ explained that the weather in 2020 was characterised by a mild start, followed by a droughty, cold, and frosty spring. Summer and autumn had extreme rainfall distribution, and then the year was closed with a very mild December.
When comparing 2020 to other years by season, last winter was the third-hottest, while spring was the third-driest since 1901.
2020 began with an average though very dry January, followed by mild and windy, almost spring-like February. It was almost 10 °C warmer than the overall average for a few days. In Drávaszabolcs, the temperature rose to 18.2 °C on February 2, thus breaking the daily heat record.
The usual winter weather got pushed way into the second half of March, when severe frosts hit the country; on March 24, a continuous layer of snow formed in Southern Transdanubia and the Southern Great Plain. In 2020, the greatest snow thickness, 28 centimetres, was measured on March 25 in Máza, Baranya County. There was also frost across the country on the first few days of April, even: national daily minimum temperature records were broken.
In April, precipitation was only a third of normal trends, and in May, it was just over half of the usual. 2020 saw the third-driest spring in Hungary since the 20th century.
Drought and frosty weather caused significant damage in many orchards as nature awakened early due to the mild February.
The summer was rainy and warm but, fortunately, there were no sudden and significant heatwaves in Hungary. In 2020, the highest temperature in the summer was measured on August 30: it was 37.4 °C in Mezőkovácsháza. Typically, precipitation came from intense thunderstorms in extreme spatial distribution. You can see the consequences of a massive storm that hit Hungary in June; it even caused death.
The rainiest day of the summer was July 24 when a torrential rainfall hit the Vése meteorological station and broke the daily rainfall record with 178 millimetres. Throughout the southwestern parts of Hungary, more than 100 millimetres of rain was measured.
In Celldömölk, on August 17, more than 60% of the monthly amount fell in one day, breaking yet another daily record.
Autumn started with summer-like weather, but from the end of September, the weather turned cooler and more changeable. As a result of heavy rainfalls, floods formed in several watercourses, and by mid-October, it was already snowing in the Mátra in the North Hungarian Mountains.
If you would like to know what to expect of the weather in Hungary in the future, you can check out the predictions of Hungarian researchers of what is to come.
OMSZ said that due to climate change, the continuous monitoring of the climate and weather conditions is particularly important, and it serves as the basis for a successful process of adaptation.
Source: 24.hu