The Central European and Russian Heat Event of July-August 2010

The large-scale conditions associated with the eastern European and Russian heat wave of July-August 2010, leading to above-normal warmth, are presented. The 500-hPa heights, 700-hPa temperatures, and other standard level fields were derived from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction Global Forecast System (NCEP GFS) 00-hour forecasts. The key features associated with the protracted heat wave included an abnormally strong ridge. The weak 250-hPa winds in ridge and the weak 700-hPa u-winds suggest that a persistent blocking episode was present. Over northern Russia, the ridge increased the gradient, and the 250-hPa winds reached as high as +5 SDs above normal at times over northern Russia and were +3 SDs above normal at 1200 UTC 28 July 2010. All the forecasts suggested +2 to +3 SD 500-hPa height anomalies over west-central Russia.