In China, an extreme temperature of 52.2 degrees Celsius was recorded

In the remote town of Sanbao in arid northwest China, the temperature exceeded 52֯C on Sunday, July 16, 2023, a new record for China. Just six months ago, China was struggling with an abnormally cold winter with temperatures in the minus 50 degrees. This is reported by Reuters.

An abnormally high temperature was recorded in the Turpan Depression in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in northwestern China, in the spurs of the Eastern Tien Shan. This basin has a maximum depth of 154 m below sea level and is the deepest in Central Asia. Chinese meteorologists believe that the record heat will last at least five days.

The previous record was +50.3֯C and was recorded in 2015 near Ayding. Since April 2023, Asian countries have been hit by record heat several times, raising concerns about their ability to adapt to rapid climate change.

Prolonged heat waves in China have caused problems with power grids and crops. Fears are growing of a possible repeat of last year’s drought, the worst in 60 years.

On January 22, 2023, the temperature in Mohe, a city in northeastern Heilongjiang Province (PRC), fell to minus 53֯C, according to the local weather bureau, breaking China’s previous record low of minus 52.3֯C set in 1969. That is, for less than 7 months, temperature fluctuations in China amounted to more than 100 degrees.