‘Mind-bogglingly crazy’: Europe’s deadly, early heatwave is smashing records | CNN

Temperature records are being smashed across Europe as parts of the continent swelter in a heat wave that is bringing extreme temperatures alarmingly early in the year. The continent is grappling with a powerful heat dome, a persistent high-pressure system which acts like a lid on a pot, trapping hot air and pushing it downward. It can remain in place for days or even weeks and is a weather phenomenon made more likely and more intense by human-caused climate change. On Monday, the UK endured its hottest May day on record, with temperatures spiking to 34.8 degrees Celsius (94.6 Fahrenheit) at Kew Gardens in London, breaking the previous record by 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit). Usually heat records are broken by only fractions of a degree. Then, on Tuesday, the record was broken again, as temperatures soared to 35 degrees (95 Fahrenheit). The average high temperature for London in late May is around 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit). As the heat climbed Monday, a wildfire broke out near Arthur’s Seat, a hill in Edinburgh, Scotland, and hundreds of properties in southeast England were left without water as demand spiked. There was little respite overnight for the UK, w