Concerns Arise over Germany's Unprecedented Heatwave

Europe has been hit with the hottest wave since the beginning of the summer, recording around 42.6 degrees Celsius.

Earlier this week, the German city of Lingen, which is located in the west of the country, set the highest temperature record ever observed in Germany at 42.6 degrees Celsius or 109 Fahrenheit in the daytime.

The heatwave, which is affecting much of Europe, has led to the delay of trains, as some railway bars were elongated and damaged by the heat.

[caption id="attachment_69271" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Dr. Hany El Noqrashy[/caption]

Several years ago, the German Federal Railway Authority "Eisenbahn-Bundesamt" started to weld the bars together using gauge tie bars, thus eliminating expansion in order to increase passenger comfort and reduce Acoustic Emissions (EA).

International Energy Expert Hany Al-Noqrashi said that the high temperature in Germany was accompanied by a scarcity of rain, which provoked a big hurdle for farmers, who lost many of their crops.

Last year, farmers lost 7 billion euros for the same reason and the government compensated them with only € 3 billion, less than half of their losses.

In the meantime, the biggest losses are expected within the forests as most of the trees in Germany are not drought-tolerant and can't adapt to dry conditions.

Studies show that 10 million square kilometers of trees worldwide are able to resist the annual emissions of carbon dioxide, the main cause of global warming.

However, with the impact of this global phenomenon, the recent hope in the planting of 10 million square kilometers (10 times more than Egypt's surface area) of trees worldwide would vanish.

Al-Noqrashi refers to Egypt's pioneering role in regenerating electricity from sunlight. Because the sun of Egypt is the most suitable for the conversion of its heat to electricity. In addition, the remainder of that heat is suitable to desalinate seawater at no additional cost.

Inpiduals have to address this issue as there is no other planet to turn to. People can take actions by reducing personal carbon emissions and world leaders can fully address this threat on a larger scale.

Contributed by: Taarek Refaat

[caption id="attachment_69275" align="aligncenter" width="690"] Rain scarcity threatens German lands and forests[/caption]