But what does it look like in the future? After all, in 1983, 40 degrees were measured for the first time in Germany – in Garmersdorf, Bavaria. So that’s when the magical brand first spread over the Alps. And it took a long time to reach 40 degrees for the second time in Germany after 1983. That means exactly 20 years. There have been two summers in the last 6 years that have broken 40 degrees. 2015 and 2019. And this summer has just begun.

This is a worrying trend in the mind of our chief meteorologist, Christian Haeckel: “Before 2019, no one would have thought we could have 40 degrees on three consecutive days in Cologne. We will certainly soon see that 40 degrees have been reached in Hamburg as well.”

That’s why climate change is happening here. “If you believe regional climate models, temperatures of up to 44, 45 or 46 degrees in the Upper Rhine Graben, for example, could be reached by the middle of the century”, About the 2019 heat wave, said Daniela Jacob, director of the Climate Service Center Germany in Hamburg.

The metropolitan areas that are extremely hot due to concrete are particularly affected by it. That’s why we need strategies for cities that reduce future pressures to some degree, and of course strategies against global warming. Because it is there and measurable.

Global warming: three major challenges facing humanity

Heat and Heavy Rain: Strategies for Our Cities