National Observatory of Athens
Coverage of National Observatory of Athens in the Nexus archive.
- Europe’s wildfire crisis eases in west as danger shifts east to Greece
Europe’s wildfire crisis has eased in western regions like France, Spain, and Portugal, but intensified in Greece, where gale-force winds fueled dangerous fires near Porto Germeno and Agios Vasileios, forcing evacuations and threatening areas previously affected by deadly 2018 wildfires.
- It’s so hot in France that a wildfire created a never-before-seen lightning cloud that ignited even more fires
A wildfire in southwest France generated a rare pyrocumulonimbus cloud, causing lightning that ignited new fires and erratic winds, leading to over 420 square kilometers burned, 240 homes damaged or destroyed, and 220,000 evacuations in Gironde. The phenomenon, uncommon in Europe, intensified the blaze by creating its own weather system.
- French wildfire created a monster cloud, unleashing lightning that ignited more fires
A wildfire in southwest France generated a pyrocumulonimbus cloud, producing lightning that ignited new fires and erratic winds. The rare phenomenon, documented in extreme fires in North America and Australia, caused over 420 square kilometers of destruction, damaged/destroyed 240 homes, and forced 220,000 evacuations in Gironde.