Climate & Environment

Balkan Heat Swings, Greece Faces Heavy Rainfall as Low-Pressure System Moves East

By Guardian staff reporter

Temperatures in the Balkans last week varied sharply, with daytime highs and overnight lows showing unusually large differences. A high‑pressure area over the region produced extended sunshine during the day, while clear skies at night allowed temperatures to fall quickly as heat escaped into the atmosphere. In Kosanica, Montenegro, the average October maximum is 15 °C (59 °F) and the average minimum is 4 °C, yet on 4 and 5 October the diurnal range reached 30 °C, more than double the monthly average.

Across Europe, high pressure is expected to build over the north and west during the coming week, pushing a low‑pressure system southward toward the Mediterranean. The low will deepen as it crosses the Adriatic and Ionian seas and then move east into the Aegean by mid‑week. This system will bring heavy rain and strong winds to Greece. Forecast models predict widespread rainfall of 50–150 mm, with the highest totals near the island of Skiathos. By the end of the week, the system will continue east, bringing showers to parts of Crete, which suffered severe flooding a week earlier that displaced cars and trees into the sea.

Meanwhile, Hurricane Simon, a Category 4 storm, is approaching Mexico’s Pacific coast near Jalisco. It is the latest of 21 named storms in the Pacific this season, 11 of which have reached hurricane strength. At the time of writing, Simon has a central pressure of 933 mb and maximum sustained winds of nearly 150 mph (241 km/h). The hurricane is expected to weaken rapidly if its core moves onshore, cutting it off from the warm ocean waters that fuel it. Heavy rainfall is affecting southwestern Mexico, with totals that could reach 300–400 mm across a wide area and 400–500 mm in the wettest locations.