Romanians woke up to the warmest January 1 in four decades on Saturday.
The spring-like weather on the first day of 2022 saw temperatures reach more than 16 Celsius, Hotnews reported.
Traditional dances
In the southern town of Dobreta Turnu-Severin people turned out to watch traditional New Year dances in temperatures of 14 C, much milder than usual.
Romania last saw unseasonably warm weather in 1982 when temperatures shot past 15 C in the some places.
It’s usually pretty chilly over the New Year. In previous years, temperatures have ranged between -31 C to well above freezing on a warm year. The past few years have generally seen temperatures inch up.
But as people rang in the New Year, it was a positively warm 11 C (50 F) in the central city of Sibiu at midnight, and 12 Celsius in Calafat in the south.
Climate change
Although winters have been getting warmer in recent years due to climate change, Romania had one of its coldest starts to the year just seven years ago.
In 2015, it was -31.5 C at Întorsura Buzăului, which lies in a depression and is one of Romania’s coldest points. In 1982, it was 8.5 C.
It was -26.6 C in Brasov and a freezing -11.5 C in Constanta seven years ago. It was below freezing in most of Romania.
Mild and wet
This year by contrast it was mild and wet in Brasov where it was raining, rather than snowing. The popular tourist town in central Romania lies in a mountainous area and skiing is popular near the city.
It was a balmy 16 C in the southern city of Pitești at lunchtime on Saturday.
Even in the upscale mountain resort of Predeal it was 4 C, much warmer than the -11.5 C registered in 2015.
Average temperatures for this time of year are -12 to -4 Celsius minimum and 5 and +4 Celsius as an average high.
Greenhouse gases
Temperatures are increasing due to human activities, specifically emissions of greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide and methane.
