There’s a lot of noise over these peaks of the Zillertal Alps. But not only they, but the entire eastern Alpine region is hit by significantly more lightning today than a few decades ago.
There are comparatively many thunderstorms in the Alps and in the foothills of the Alps, which is why lightning occurs more frequently there than, for example, in the North German lowlands. Lightning can therefore pose a significant risk to people, animals and technical equipment in mountainous regions. It is all the more important to keep an eye on the frequency of lightning and thunderstorms and to monitor possible changes.
Thorsten Simon from the University of Innsbruck and his colleagues have therefore used weather and climate data and a computer model to investigate how the lightning frequency in the Eastern European Alps developed from 1980 to 2019. It turned out that the danger of a lightning strike in the Alps is now significantly higher than it was around 40 years ago. The southern edge of the Alps and the high altitudes are particularly affected. It’s twice as common there today as there was then.
“In the high-altitude areas of the Eastern Alps, the lightning season is now reaching a stronger maximum and starting a month earlier,” reports Simon. “During the day, the peak is up to 50 percent stronger, with more flashes in the afternoon and evening.”
But why has the number of lightning strikes increased at all? Simon and his team see climate change as one of the main causes. The rising temperatures caused by it are increasingly causing muggy and warm weather and thus increasing the risk of thunderstorms. Following this trend, the number of alpine lightning bolts could increase even more in the future.