Israel has recently been experiencing a spate of unseasonable rainy weather. Nahum Malik, a forecaster from meteorology firm Meteo-Tech, explains the phenomenon in a conversation with Israel National News.
"I am surprised by the event itself. Although we knew there was a possibility of rain, I am surprised that this kind of rain fell on such a date. Although last year there were already rains in June, this time it rained every few days accompanied by thunderstorms. This is definitely an unusual event."
"The simplest explanation to say is global warming and climate change, and it may be true, but it's a bit early to say it absolutely," says Malik and adds that "there is no doubt that we are witnessing climate change in Israel and in the world at a level that has not been seen in decades. Weather phenomena are occurring at strange times. Global warming causes various changes and extreme and unusual weather such as droughts, floods, flooding, storms and also the event we experienced yesterday that took place in a strange intersection of the south and central regions of Israel, which was hard to imagine would happen."
As for global warming, which seems to us to contradict the semi-winter weather, Malik says: "We take measurements all the time on earth at meteorological stations scattered all over the world, from which the information comes to meteorological centers that examine various parameters such as precipitation, moisture, etc. The data show an average increase of the temperatures on Earth in recent years. This is mainly manifested in the summer, when in the USA and Europe the temperatures are much higher than twenty or thirty years ago."
"This transition to warming also results in extreme weather events for a short period of time compared to the warming that happens throughout time," explains Malik. "The warming causes the temperatures of the oceans and continents to rise, and this disrupts the atmospheric pressure systems, which causes such and such weather events."
Malik addresses the controversial issue of whether human actions have contributed to global warming: "That's a question - is it man-made and indeed industrialization and the progress of mankind cause it or is it some kind of cycle. There is a debate among scientists. Most scientists see industrialization and pollutants like cars, buses and smoke as the cause. I think the truth is in the middle. Humanity contributes, but it may also be a cycle that we are not aware of."
“It is true that warming can cause a revolution in the weather. Areas become deserts, which can cause many different effects. The human contribution to reducing warming is certainly welcome, but it is not certain that humanity is the main cause."
As for the expected weather in the coming days and weeks, Malik says that "summer rain events are known in Israel. They have happened before. This is a phenomenon that occurs once every few years. At the moment we do not see rain in the forecast range, only pleasant summer weather.”