Changes in Crimea’s climate over the recent decades

Abstract

This article is dedicated to assessment of the climate changes of the Republic of Crimea over the last few decades. Throughout the analysis, the research utilized data on air temperature changes in the temperate latitudes of Europe by paleoclimatic data, as well as by changes in average temperature of surface waters in the Black Sea according coastal measurements. It is demonstrated that on the background of global warming there are natural manifestations of climatic fluctuations with periods of up to 20 years that relate to warm episodes such as El Niño and North-Atlantic fluctuation. The research methodology is based on the modern theory of global warming, which replaced the Milankovitch cycles concept used until the 1980’s. One of the main consequences of global warming for Russia lies in the significant increase in the frequency of reoccurrence of dangerous hydrometeorological phenomena. Examples of such phenomena include strong floods and heat waves. In a number of regions, the increase in temperature is also accompanied by spread of agents of dangerous diseases – ticks and marsh mosquitoes. However, the most notable damage caused by the climate change in Russia comes from drought.