The relatively warm conditions that the Mediterranean Sea is having this year have favored the formation of an atypical cyclone called Numa that has already killed fifteen people in the Attica region, in the west of Athens, and that may cause significant damage in the coming days.
This type of Mediterranean cyclones, known as medicanes, They are phenomena that very rarely occur, but when they do they can be almost as destructive as hurricanes that hit the coasts of America or Asia.
What is a medicane?
medicine it is a term that arose from the words Mediterráneo and Huracán (hurricane in English). Even so, they should not be confused because the core of the Mediterranean cyclone is cold airwhile that of hot air hurricanes. It is therefore an atypical storm, which feeds on the heat accumulated by the sea.
What are the possible consequences of Numa?
Numa, due to the combination of the cold air of its core and the relatively warm water of the Mediterranean, is leaving torrential rains. Also It will be accompanied by gusts of wind that can be very strong, of 200 kilometers per hour starting on Thursday, reaching the busiest hours on Saturday and Sunday.
The most affected area is expected to be between the Ionian Sea and the Southern Balkans, where up to 400 millimeters of accumulated precipitation can be recorded (1 millimeter of rainwater equals 1 liter of water per m2). Although it has already caused significant damage: 15 people have died and many have disappeared. From here, we hope that these figures do not increase further.
Will it rain in Spain?
Here in Spain we are living one of the worst droughts in the country's history. Regrettably, Neither the Iberian peninsula nor the Balearic nor Canary archipelagos will receive a single drop of Numa.