Scorched by the sun: an abnormal heat wave is coming to Central Russia

The temperature in Moscow and the Moscow region exceeded the climatic norm by 7-8 degrees on May 18, and the heat will only increase in the coming days, meteorologists told Izvestia. The abnormal weather, uncharacteristic for the second half of May, will last until Friday, and then rains with thunderstorms will arrive in Moscow. However, they will be weaker than those that covered the city on the evening of May 17, when 56% of the monthly precipitation fell in three hours. In addition to the capital region, the heat will come to Tula, Nizhny Novgorod, Voronezh, Kurgan regions and Bashkiria. Whether she will stay there for a long time, and whether she threatens fires, is in the Izvestia article.

How long will the heat last

The abnormal heat wave in Moscow and the Moscow Region will last at least until Friday, May 22, Tatyana Pozdnyakova, a leading specialist at the Meteonosti news agency, told Izvestia. On Saturday, rains will arrive in the capital, and the temperature will drop to +21-26 degrees.

— The temperature of +28...+30 degrees, which was set in Moscow and the region on Monday, is 7-8 degrees above the climatic norm. And new temperature records are expected on Wednesday and Thursday," she said.

These days it will be up to +32 degrees in the capital, and at night — from +14 to +20 degrees, the Hydrometeorological Center of Russia reported. According to Tatiana Pozdnyakova, the hot air came to us from Central Asia.

"There weren't many clouds, the anticyclone is hot and dry now and is still warming up," the expert explained.

The temperature will start to drop only on the evening of Friday, May 22, when a cold atmospheric front with rains and thunderstorms will approach the capital. However, precipitation will be weaker than last Sunday, when a heavy downpour hit the capital, breaking a 122-year-old record, said Mikhail Leus, a leading specialist at the Phobos weather center.

"In just three hours, 34 mm of precipitation fell on Moscow, which is 56% of the monthly May norm. Of these, 28 mm fell in the evening hours, which became a new daily record for the maximum amount of precipitation," he wrote on his social networks.

On Saturday and Sunday, the temperature will drop to +21...+26 degrees, that is, it will return to the climatic norm, said Tatiana Pozdnyakova. The nights will stay warm.

Where else will it get warmer

Abnormal heat will come to other regions of Central Russia for several days, for example, to the Tula and Voronezh regions, as well as to the Volga region and the Urals, Alexander Shuvalov, head of the Meteo forecasting center, told Izvestia.

— On Tuesday, May 19, it will be from +24 to +29 degrees in the Urals. The same values are also found in the south of the Northwestern Federal District, for example, in Komi and the Vologda Oblast," he said.

According to the meteorologist, the warm air will move to the West. A short-term heat wave will arrive in St. Petersburg, where on Tuesday the air will warm up to +28...+29 degrees. It will be about 30 degrees in Veliky Novgorod and Pskov.

In the Urals and in the Volga region, the heat will not last long.

— The anticyclone, which will mainly go to Siberia, will spread its influence to the east of the European territory. Therefore, starting from Thursday, the temperature in Kazan and Naberezhnye Chelny will drop to 22-24 degrees," said Alexander Shuvalov.

In these regions, the temperature drop will be without heavy rains.

And in some regions, despite the second half of May, frosts still persist. We are talking, in particular, about the Novosibirsk, Kemerovo regions and the Altai Territory, where the temperature will drop to -5 degrees at night, the Hydrometeorological Center of Russia clarified. In addition, the Arctic cyclone will bring snow and rain to Siberia, where the maximum air temperature will be kept within -1...+5 degrees.

The threat of fires

Dry weather can affect the development of forest fires, fire safety expert Vitaly Boyko believes.

— A fire protection regime has been in effect in the Moscow region since April. A 30-degree heat wave is too high a temperature for the region, if such weather drags on, the regime will be extended," he said.

The expert clarified that during the fire protection regime, there is a ban on visiting forests, making bonfires and burning garbage. Fines for violating them increase to 20 thousand rubles for citizens, 60 thousand for officials, 80 thousand for entrepreneurs, and up to 800 thousand rubles for legal entities.

— Fires occur here, as a rule, due to the human factor. That is, even during hot weather, compliance with fire safety regulations can significantly reduce the number of fires," emphasized Vitaliy Boyko.

According to the Federal Forestry Agency, a special fire protection regime is in effect in 46 regions of Russia. Forest fires were recorded last week in Yakutia, Primorsky, Khabarovsk, Zabaikalsky, Krasnoyarsk Territories and a number of other regions. For example, in Primorye, 21 wildfires were registered over the past weekend alone, the fire covered more than 2.4 thousand hectares. Since the beginning of May, more than 1,000 wildfires have occurred in the entire Far East, affecting more than 500,000 hectares.