Summer was very hot and very dry in Vaucluse. We felt it, and now the data from Météo France confirms it. This summer of 2022 is exceptional in several respects: the temperatures are higher than normal, the precipitation is abnormally low and the wind further accentuates the dryness of the soil. So much so that this year 2022 already ranks in the 10% of the driest years in Vaucluse since records began in 1959.
The department has had a record rain deficit since January 1. Météo France has recorded 180 millimeters of precipitation since January 1, compared to 400 mm over the same period for a normal year. And the drought is accentuated by very high temperatures. The Vaucluse experienced a very long heat wave episode, with ten consecutive days in orange vigilance, between July 31 and August 10.
And on average, it was 24.8 degrees this summer in the department, counting day and night and counting landforms, which is about three degrees warmer than normal. And it is at altitude that the temperature anomalies are the highest, with + 5 degrees on average on the peaks of the Petit Luberon in Oppède, or + 3.8 degrees at the Mont Serein resort.
In details :
- it was 26.6°C on average in Avignon this summer, i.e. + 2.8°C compared to normal
- it was 26.3°C on average in Mérindol this summer, i.e. + 3°C compared to normal
- it was 25.9°C on average in Carpentras this summer, i.e. + 2.4°C compared to normal
- it was 24.7°C on average in Apt this summer, i.e. + 2.8°C compared to normal
Insufficient rainfall in mid-August
These extreme droughts are likely to be repeated in the years to come, under the effect of climate change, warns Météo France. The months of September and October are already looking to be warmer than normal once again. The Vaucluse has also already lost the little profit gained with the rainfall in mid-August. “It has slightly improved the dryness of the soil, but the heat we are experiencing and the lack of precipitation, the sun and the wind have caused the humidity of the soil to have already dropped.explains Florian Gibier, engineer at Météo France Sud-Est. And since there were high intensities, the rain also trickled on dry soil, which was of very little benefit to the soil.”
Météo France also notes records for the number of tropical nights, during which temperatures were greater than or equal to 20 degrees. The city of Carpentras in particular recorded 18 hot nights in 2022, which greatly exceeds the previous record of 15 nights in 2006.