The heat will peak in Catalunya between Thursday and Friday, after several nights with record lows in different parts of the territory and with Barcelona nearing its warmest May night on record.
The anomaly arrives, moreover, without the Servei Meteorològic de Catalunya issuing warnings for intense heat or being able to classify the episode as a heatwave. The agency recalls that this threshold requires at least three consecutive days above values linked to extreme temperatures in June, July, and August.
Portbou registered a provisional low of 28 ºC and broke the 2001 record
One of the highest readings of the night occurred in Portbou, where the provisional minimum temperature reached 28 ºC. This figure surpasses the previous May record in that location, which was 26.9 ºC and was measured in 2001.
In Barcelona, the night also came very close to becoming the warmest May night. The episode affects several parts of Catalunya with nighttime values unusual for this time of year, although the precedent of May 2022 still stands.
That episode saw 34.4 ºC at the Fabra Observatory and 38.5 ºC in Catalunya, figures that have not been surpassed on this occasion. The difference lies in the behavior of the minimum temperatures, which have set new records in several observatories.
Meteocat places the peak between Thursday and Friday without declaring a heatwave
The Servei Meteorològic de Catalunya predicts that the hottest moment will arrive between Thursday and Friday. Despite this, it has not activated warnings for intense heat in this episode.
Aleix Serra, head of the data quality control team at the Servei Meteorològic de Catalunya, described the succession of extreme readings as follows.
"It's like a great champion who breaks records in a wild way" - Aleix Serra, head of the data quality control team, Servei Meteorològic de Catalunya
Serra adds that global warming is behind a greater frequency of extreme episodes and more frequent, longer, and more intense high-temperature situations. The behavior this May fits that trend, although it does not yet fall within the technical definition of a heatwave.
Outside of Catalunya, early signs of this heat advance are also appearing. In the United Kingdom, the first 35 ºC have already been recorded in May, whereas until now that threshold was usually reached at the end of June.
The strongest precedent continues to be that of May 2022, with 34.4 ºC at the Fabra Observatory and a maximum of 38.5 ºC in Catalonia.