Several #Arctic locations recorded land surface temperatures hitting 45C on 19 June, according to initial data from the @esa satellite Sentinel-3.

Here is what you need to know... (THREAD 1/7) https://twitter.com/defis_eu/status/1275337831704035328
The 45C reading is land surface temp – how hot the surface is to the touch – which is commonly measured by satellites.

The 38C reading is surface air temp – how warm the air is just above the ground. This is what is you usually see in weather forecasts and climate data.

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Typically, on a sunny day, the land surface temperature will be warmer than the air above it (see this paper: https://journals.ametsoc.org/jamc/article/50/3/767/13630/Evaluation-of-the-Relationship-between-Air-and)

But there’s no fixed relationship between the two as this varies with weather conditions

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The block means any oncoming (cooler, wetter) weather is deflected away or also stays put.

Summer blocking events were the root cause of other major heatwaves, e.g. Europe in 2003 & Russia in 2010.

As this @BerkeleyEarth map shows, Siberia has seen a very warm 2020 so far

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