The rate of climate warming in Uzbekistan exceeds the world average. Uzhydromet assessed the air temperature trend across the territory of Uzbekistan, which showed an increase rate above the global average. Analysis of changes in average annual air temperature from the beginning of observations to 2019 inclusive showed that warming trends are evident in all climatic zones of Uzbekistan, and the rate of temperature increase significantly exceeds the average rate observed on a global scale. According to weather forecasters, the greatest increases in average annual air temperatures were noted in large cities, probably due to the additional effect of urbanization (Tashkent, Samarkand, Fergana). The lowest rates of increase in average annual temperature are observed in the mountainous regions of the republic. Average air temperatures over the last decade (2010-2019) and the last five years (2015-2019) were the highest compared to the previous 10-year and 5-year periods for the entire range of meteorological observations in almost all regions of Uzbekistan. In 2019, the average annual temperature over most of the territory was 1.6-2.3° above normal, in the Aral Sea region and in the desert zone in some places 2.9-3.1° above normal. Only in the mountainous regions of the republic the deviation of the average annual temperature from the norm did not exceed 1° and amounted to 0.5-0.9°. It is noted that 2019 in Uzbekistan became the second warmest in the history of meteorological observations. 2016 remains the warmest year in the history of observations in the republic. Climate scientists attribute this to a combination of two factors – the very powerful warming El Niño phenomenon and long-term climate change. One of the indicators of climate warming is a steady trend of increasing the number of days with air temperatures of 40° and above in all regions of Uzbekistan. The most significant trends in the increase in the number of hot days were noted in the Aral Sea region and in the southern regions of the republic. At the same time, in the summer of 2019, an abnormally long duration of hot weather was observed in all regions of the republic. The number of days with air temperatures of 40° and above significantly exceeded the long-term average values, and even the values of 2016.
The rate of climate warming in Uzbekistan exceeds the world average.
