(CTN NEWS) – Beijing reached temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees F) on Saturday for a record third day as the Chinese city sweltered in intense heat, while an area the size of California in northern China was scorched by unusually high temperatures for June.
The temperature recorded by Beijing’s benchmark weather station in its southern suburbs temporarily climbed beyond 40C at 1:51 p.m. (0551 GMT).
Since establishing the southern observatory in 1951, the city of approximately 22 million people had never experienced three consecutive days with a high of 40 degrees Celsius.
Temperature Measured In Beijing’s Provinces
In addition to Beijing, portions of the neighbouring provinces of Hebei, Henan, Shandong, Inner Mongolia, and Tianjin either increased or maintained their hot weather alert at “red,” the highest possible level under China’s four-tier warning system.
A red signal means that within the next 24 hours, the temperature could rise above 40C.
Approximately 450,000 square kilometres (174,000 square miles) experienced temperatures above 37C as of 1:13 p.m., according to local media.
In a report published on Friday, Capital Economics stated that “last year’s heatwave gives some sense of the risks to China’s food supply and the potential impact on prices.”
China’s Key Grower Of Grain
Another drought would reduce food output, and cattle are more susceptible to extreme heat.
The most populous province in China after Guangdong and a major grain producer, Shandong, experienced ground surface temperatures above 70C on Saturday.
Warm air masses connected with high pressure ridges in the atmosphere contributed to the heatwaves, the second round in around 10 days.
According to Chinese meteorologists, the effect was exacerbated by the summer solstice’s prolonged sunshine hours and little cloud cover.
The official Beijing Daily claimed, citing official data, that the average number of days in Beijing between 1990 and 2020 with temperatures of 35C or higher was 10.6.
The publication reported that even though June has not yet ended, that number has already been eclipsed after Beijing recorded temperatures above 35°C on Saturday for the eleventh day in a row.
After sweltering at 41.1C on Thursday, the second-hottest day the Chinese city has ever experienced, Beijing roasted in temperatures as high as 40.3C on Friday.
On July 24, 1999, Beijing had an all-time high temperature of 41.9C.
It is anticipated that the heat waves in northern China will subside by Monday before strengthening again later in the week.
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