Variability in the occurrence of thermal seasons in Poland in 1961–2020

The article analyses the variability of thermal seasons in Poland in 1961–2020. Based on the average monthly air temperature values from 55 stations, the onset and end dates as well as the duration of the six thermal seasons were calculated. Taking into account the thermal thresholds of 0 C, 5 C and 15 C for each year, early spring, spring, summer, autumn, early winter and winter can be distinguished. A significant spatial differentiation of the dates of the beginning and duration of the thermal seasons in Poland was observed. The influence of continentalism (in the east) and oceanic climate (in the west) and the influence of the Baltic Sea are noticeable, and in mountainous regions, altitude above sea level is the main factor. The air temperature in Poland increases at the rate of 0.3 C–0.4 C/10 years. This causes significant changes in the occurrence and duration of the thermal seasons. An early beginning of early spring and spring was observed. Summer arrives earlier and is significantly longer, becoming the longest season of the year (above 110 days in the south of Poland). Autumn and early winter are delayed and get shorter, whereas winter comes much later. Throughout the country, winter is 44 days shorter, and in the north-west it does not occur at all. Changes in the onset of thermal seasons are a clear indicator of progressing global warming. They have also a decisive impact on the environment and human activity

Air temperature in Wrocław (Breslau) in the period 1710-1721 based on measurements made by David von Grebner

The history of early-instrumental meteorological observations in Poland is quite rich and is among the longest in the world. The first observations were made in Warsaw in late 1654 or early 1655, while the temperature series described and analysed here is the second oldest instrumental series in Poland. Temperature and atmospheric pressure observations were made in Wrocław (Breslau, nowadays south-west Poland) from April 1710 to December 1721 by the physician David von Grebner and both series are now the longest surviving Polish series of their kind (Grebner 1723, for more details see also Przybylak 2010). David von Grebner used the Florentine thermometer (Thermometrum Academiae Florentinae), which had a brass scale with a star in the middle, above which were 80 degrees and below which were 100 degrees (Landsberg 1983). The results of his observations are available in unpublished form in the Library of Wrocław University. For purposes of comparison, another Wrocław physician – Johann Kanold (1679-1729) – began meteorological measurements in Silesia (e.g. Wrocław, Oława, and Legnica) and in other European countries in 1717. He recorded measurements in Wrocław up to 1726, and then from 1727 to 1730 they were continued by Andreas Elias Büchner (1701-1769), a professor of medicine at Wrocław University (Brázdil and Valášek 2002, Munzar 2003, Brázdil et al. 2008). These included measurements of air temperature, air pressure, wind direction and general descriptions of weather. Measurements were taken three times a day and the results were published in an encyclopaedic series Sammlung Von Natur- und Medicin-, Wie auch hierzu gehörigen Kunst- und Literatur-Geschichten (the so-called Breslauer Sammlung – Wrocław Collection). In the early-instrumental measurement period observers used thermometers with unknown individualised scales which are difficult to convert to the scales used in present-day instruments. That is why comparison of temperature changes between historical times and the present day is rather difficult. At the first half of 36 the 18th century all over Europe, thermometers based on the Florentine thermometer (Magnum Thermometrum Academiae Florentinae) have often been used. However, these instruments were different from those originally constructed in Italy. For example, in Europe (including Italy) Florentine thermometers with 180-degree, 200-degree or even with 360-degree scales were used (Middleton 1966, Quinn and Compton 1975). Moreover, the two fixed points used in the construction of today’s thermometers (freezing and boiling points) were not used in these thermometers. That is why, even comparison of temperature measurements made by different thermometers of the same type can be impossible, if the instruments were not identical and more research is still needed to solve the problem of converting the old scales to new ones. Some work has already been done on this issue (e.g. Camuffo 2002a, 2002b, Cocheo and Camuffo 2002), however, similar investigations are needed for other copies of thermometers. At present the only way we can compare the historical and present climate is by using the index method for available temperature measurements (for more details about this method see, e.g. Pfister 1992 or Przybylak et al. 2005). For the purposes of describing the present temperature characteristics in Wrocław the following studies have been used: Kosiba (1948), Pyka (1991, 1998), Dubicka (1996), Dubicka and Pyka (2001)

The influence of benzene air pollution on leukemia incidence and mortality rates

The following study identifies areas where adverse conditions related to benzene pollution are concurrent with leukaemia incidence and mortality (C91-C95). Moreover, it determines the similarities between benzene and leukaemia levels, as well and rules defining their co-occurrence. The analysis covered the period of 2015-2017. Data was obtained from Dane.gov.pl (number of leukaemia cases),  Polish National Cancer Registry website (number of deaths),  Local Data Bank of the Central Statistical Office (population data) and from Chief Inspectorate of Environmental Protection and found via the Air Quality Portal (data on air quality). Based on the carried out analysis, it was concluded that areas with an unfavourable epidemic situation related to leukaemia are the following poviat towns: Kielce (incidence), Rzeszów (incidence), Elbląg (mortality), while high leukaemia incidence and mortality co-occur with high average benzene concentration in 2015 -2017 in the following poviat towns: Kielce, Rybnik, Płock and Rzeszów. It was found that leukaemias belonging to the following three-character ICD-10 categories: C94, C95 and C92, show the highest rate of co-occurrence with benzene concentration. In addition, two main rules for the co-occurrence of benzene pollution and leukaemia were identified. It was also noted that it is necessary to continue the research over a longer-period of time, especially in the following poviat towns: Kielce and Rzeszów

The influence of brine graduation towers on biometeorological conditions, on the example of Ciechocinek spa town (Poland)

The paper provides an analysis of the influence of brine graduation towers on biometeorological conditions, on the basis of the example of Ciechocinek – a spa town in Poland. Using the records of air temperature and relative air humidity in the years 2018-2020 at two locations near Graduation Tower 1 and at the reference site near Spa Hospital No. 1 it was demonstrated that the graduation towers caused a mean drop in air temperature of 0.5–0.7°C with maximum diff erences 7.5°C. The average humidity due to brine evaporation was 3.6–4.6% higher, but maximum differences exceeded 30%. Based on mobile measurements the effects of the graduation tower were found to be limited to its vicinity, where air temperature was lower and humidity higher. The distribution of air temperature and humidity changed depending on wind direction. Cooler and more humid air was carried downwind of the graduation tower. The calculated biometeorological indices showed that neutral, comfortable or refreshing conditions prevailed at the graduation tower and the sensation of heat or thermal stress leading to body overheating was less frequent

Optical density of Scots pine wood and climatic conditions in Toruń, Poland

The aim of the studies was to evaluate the usefulness of the microscopic features of wood in characterising the climatic conditions of a period for which only proxy data are available. Samples were taken from historical wood from Koronowo collegiate church and from a living Scots pine tree growing in the Toruń-Wrzosy site. All measurements were performed using ImageJ software. The dendroclimatological analysis was carried out in the program DendroClim2002. The results show a correlation between the microscopic features of wood and climatic conditions. For the period 1951–2000 the maximum optical density of pine wood depends on average May air temperature and June precipitation, with correlation coefficients of -0.32 and -0.29, respectively. A similar correlation was found for mean maximum and minimum temperatures in May; -0.35 and -0.37, respectively. Additional correlations between selected meteorological elements and the maximum optical density of the wood were found using 30-year moving averages and moving intervals

Ekstremalne warunki klimatyczne w Toruniu w okresie pomiarów instrumentalnych, 1871–2010

Klimat jako jedna ze składowych środowiska przyrodniczego ma największe znaczenie dla życia i gospodarki człowieka. Niesprzyjające warunki pogodowe i klimatyczne prowadziły do klęsk wielkich armii czy upadków cywilizacji. Poznanie zmienności warunków klimatycznych to jedno z podstawowych zadań klimatologii, w tym szczególnie klimatologii historycznej. Klimat można określić jako średnie warunki pogodowe dla danego obszaru. Do określenia warunków średnich konieczne jest stworzenie możliwie jak najdłuższej homogenicznej serii pomiarowej. Na przełomie XX i XXI w. złożone zostały serie homogeniczne dla najdłuższych serii pomiarowych temperatury powietrza w Polsce (m.in. dla Krakowa, Łodzi, Gdańska, Warszawy). W przypadku Torunia złożone serie pomiarowe temperatury powietrza i opadów atmosferycznych obejmują lata 1871– 2010. Oprócz badania warunków średnich dla określanego obszaru istotne jest wyznaczenie warunków ekstremalnych wybranych elementów klimatu, ponieważ to te warunki często prowadzą do wystąpienia klęsk elementarnych. Celem tego opracowania jest wyznaczenie na podstawie kryteriów statystycznych ekstremalnych warunków termiczno-opadowych w Toruniu w okresie pomiarów instrumentalnych

The frequency, intensity, and origin of floods in Poland in the 11th–15th centuries based on documentary evidence

Documentary evidence is increasingly being recognized as a precious source for assessing flood records. We have used this type of proxy data to identify the occurrence of floods in Poland from the 11th to the 15th centuries. In addition, we estimated the intensity of each flood event using the best-known classifications for Europe (Barriendos and Coeur, 2004; Br´azdil et al., 2006) and assessed their origin based on modified Lambor’s (1954) criteria. The database of floods in Poland contains 166 occurrences in the study period. Most occurred in the 15th century (61.4%). Of the studied regions, Silesia and the Baltic Coast and Pomerania regions were the two most affected by flood events, each accounting for 33–34% of instances. Based on the Br´azdil et al. (2006) classification, 77 of the recorded floods are above-average or supra-regional. Also, the indexation of floods based on Barriendos and Coeur (2004) demonstrated that 99 were extraordinary flood events. Rain and its subtypes were the leading causes of floods, with 79 records (47.6%). Flood occurrence in Poland exhibited good spatial coherency with neighboring countries. The updated and most complete inventory of floods in medieval Poland that we present here with a detailed analysis of their frequency, intensity and origin, improves the existing knowledge about this phenomenon in Central Europe. The results of this study, similarly to many other previous studies, also confirm the great capacity for documentary evidence to provide valuable and reliable information about flood records for the pre-instrumental period

An assessment of flood occurrences in Poland in the 16th century

Study region The contemporary area of Poland comprises six main regions: Baltic Coast and Pomerania, Masuria-Podlasie, Greater Poland, Masovia, Silesia, Lesser Poland, and three main river basins, the Vistula, the Oder, and the Baltic Coast. Study focus To fill the knowledge gap for historical floods in Poland we used documentary evidence as reliable sources to assess historical floods in Poland during the 16th century. New hydrological insights for the region This research is one of the most novel and comprehensive studies of historical floods in Europe, spanning floods in Poland registered in the 16th century. Specifically, in addition to the list of flood occurrence records, we also provide detailed information about the historical sources used (including estimations of credibility), extracted weather notes, and indexation of flood intensity and origins. The results showed that, based on documentary evidence, 294 floods occurred in Poland in the study period. Most were recorded in the Silesia region (170 floods). The intensity of floods estimated based on the Brázdil et al. (2006b) and Barriendos and Coeur (2004) classifications indicated that most belong to “above-average or supra-regional flood” and “extraordinary” categories, respectively. Classifications of the origin of floods based on Lambor (1954) revealed that the main reason for flood occurrences in Poland during the 16th century was rain and its subtypes (torrential, frontal, and long-lasting, accounting for 53% of floods)

Zróżnicowanie warunków termicznych w rejonie Forlandsundet (NW Spitsbergen) w sezonie letnim 2010

The paper presents the results of air temperature measurements carried out in the Forlandsundet region (NW Spitsbergen) in summer 2010. Temperature was recorded using automatic weather station Davis Ventage PRO2 and MadgeTech loggers in 18 sites located in different environments such as tundra, glacier, and mountains (Tab. 1, Fig. 1). The investigations were supported by the Polish-Norwegian Fund as part of the project entitled ‘Arctic Climate and Environment of the Nordic Seas and the Svalbard- Greenland Area’. A review of the results obtained is presented in Tables 2–3 and Figures 2–4. Analysis of this documentation shows that: I. Spatial temperature differentiation in the study area in the summer season is significant and reaches values of 3 and 4oC for mean seasonal and extreme characteristics, respectively, II. The highest real temperature occurred on the Prins Karls Forland island, while the coldest one was in the firn field of the Waldemar Glacier. On the other hand, the highest values of temperature reduced to sea level were noted on the summit of Prins Heinrichfjella. No change was noted in the case of the spatial occurrence of the coldest temperatures, III. Markedly the highest values of the diurnal temperature range were noted in the summit area of Prins Heinrichfjella, while the lowest ones were in the sites with the greatest maritime influences, IV. Larger spatial differentiation of temperature was noted in diurnal hours than in “night” hours, as well as in days with less cloudiness and with the occurrence of local winds, e.g. foehns