Twa-three fowk haes awready cryed it Europe’s first ‘dystopian’ simmer, like a nichtmare oot o ane o thae lee-science buiks or pictures. But here it’s here, an it’s climate chenge. In the simmer o 2026 undemous bleezes haes sae faur brunt pairts o Croaitie, Fraunce, Germany, Ingland, Irland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norrowa, Portingal, Spainie, Ukrain, an Wales, an here, in Scotland, in the Cairngorms. Bi the stert o August 2026 the haed been ower 1,200 fires in EU kintras alane. A muckle fire scowdert the province o Ávila, in Spainie, burnin near on 50,000 hectares o grund, wi tens o thoosands o fowk haein tae flee thair hames. The fires haes creepit ootby Madrid itsel. Forder north, Fraunce haes seen ane fire efter anither lowpin the depairtments o Landes an Gironde threitenin the twa national parks thareawa. The fires is mair appearant in the wast o Europe, aiblins, but in Greece the services is noo warslin wi kenspeckle ootbreks. In Mey the wast o Europe seen its ordnar daily temperatures gae mair nor 10 degrees Celcius abuin the expectit feegurs, while Europe as a hail haed its warmest recordit Jooly.

Whit wey is this? Weel, Europe is growin warmer at twyst the rate o the lave o the warld, an this haes muckle tae dae wi the ice-lowsing in polar airts. The mair ice at lowses, the daurker the watter, an daurker watter souks in sunlicht, makkin mair ice lowse turn aboot. The affcome o this is, that the norland watters sweelin aboot Europe is noo warmer nor thay aince war for ordnar, an warmer watters maks for warmer uprises o air. In parteeclar, the’r bodies o air, affen twa-three layers thick, that streitches in jets at a muckle heicht an traps mair heat ower Europe. An it’s throu thir watters an air that the syle in sindry pairts haes turnt drouthie. An drouthie girss is easy in a lowe. Ingland an Wales haes haed thair drouthiest Jooly fae registers stertit in 1836, an this is whit wey the’r a want o watter in Ingland noo. The rainfaw haes been doun, even scant, in thae kintras, for the time o year, but in pairts o Scotland whiles an orra onding. Ower aw, the kintras o thir isles haes been growin warmer fae the 1980’s onwards. For the month o August at least, the pouers in Ingland an Fraunce will hae tae bide tentie tae the threit o mair fires, while the fowk o Europe, it seems, maun dree this climate weird.

Photie: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC. Shawin Spainie on 29 Jooly 2026.