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As Francis Bacon, the great English Renaissance man of letters, aptly observed, “Every wind has its weather.” It is air mass circulation that provides the main key to Europe’s climate, the more so since masses of Atlantic Ocean origin can pass freely through the lowlands, except in the case of the Caledonian mountains of Norway. Polar air masses derived from areas close to Iceland and tropical masses from the Azores bring, respectively, very different conditions of temperature and humidity and produce different climatic effects as they move eastward. Continental air masses from eastern Europe have equally easy access westward. The almost continuous belt of mountains trending west-east across Europe also impedes the interchange of tropical and polar air masses.
Air pressure belts
Patterns of some permanence controlling air mass circulation are created by belts of air pressure over five areas. They are the Icelandic low, over the North Atlantic; the Azores high, a high-pressure ridge; the (winter) Mediterranean low; the Siberian high, centred over Central Asia in winter but extending westward; and the Asiatic low, a low-pressure summertime system over southwestern Asia. Given those pressure conditions, westerly winds prevail in northwestern Europe, becoming especially strong in winter. The winter westerlies, often from the southwest, bring in warm tropical air; in summer, by contrast, they veer to the northwest and bring in cooler Arctic or subarctic air. In Mediterranean Europe the rain-bearing westerlies chiefly affect the western areas, but only in winter. In winter the eastern Mediterranean basin experiences bitter easterly and northeasterly winds derived from the Siberian high. Those winds’ occasional projection westward explains unusually cold winters in western and central Europe, while exceptionally warm winters in that region result from the sustained flow of tropical maritime air masses. In summer the Azores high moves 5°–10° of latitude northward and extends farther eastward, preventing the entry of cyclonic storms into the resultantly dry Mediterranean region. The eastern basin, however, experiences the hot and dry north and northeast summer winds called etesian by the ancient Greeks. In summer too, the Siberian high gives place to a low-pressure system extending westward, so that westerly air masses can penetrate deeply through the continent, making summer generally a wet season.
It is because of the interplay of so many different air masses that Europe experiences highly changeable weather. Winters get sharply colder eastward, but summer temperatures relate fairly closely to latitude. Northwestern Europe, including Iceland, enjoys some amelioration because of warm Gulf Stream waters of the Atlantic, which, for example, keep the Russian port of Murmansk open throughout the year.
Climatic regions
Four regional European climatic types can be loosely distinguished. However, each is characterized by much local, topographically related variation. The climate in mountainous regions, for instance, is partly determined by elevation, and a variety of climatic types may be “stacked” vertically upon a mountain. Further, the great cities of Europe—because of the scale and grouping of their buildings, their industrial activities, and the layout of their roads—create distinct local climates, including urban “heat islands” (city centres that are warmer than outlying areas) and pollution problems.
Maritime climate
Characterizing western areas heavily exposed to Atlantic air masses, the maritime type of climate—given the latitudinal stretch of those lands—exhibits sharp temperature ranges. Thus, the January and July annual averages of Reykjavík, Iceland, are about 32 °F (0 °C) and 53 °F (12 °C) respectively, and those of Coruña, Spain, are about 50 °F (10 °C) and 64 °F (18 °C). Precipitation is always adequate—indeed, abundant on high ground—and falls year-round. The greatest amount of precipitation occurs in autumn or early winter. Summers range from warm to hot depending on latitude and elevation, and the weather is changeable everywhere. The maritime climate extends across Svalbard, Iceland, the Faroes, Great Britain and Ireland, Norway, southern Sweden, western France, the Low Countries, northern Germany, and northwestern Spain.
Central European climate
The central European, or transitional, type of climate results from the interaction of both maritime and continental air masses and is found at the core of Europe, south and east of the maritime type, west of the much larger continental type, and north of the Mediterranean type. That rugged region has colder winters, with substantial mountain snowfalls, and warmer summers, especially in the lowlands. Precipitation is adequate to abundant, with a summer maximum. The region embraces central Sweden, southern Finland, the Oslo Basin of Norway, eastern France, southwestern Germany, and much of central and southeastern Europe. The range between winter and summer temperatures increases eastward, while the precipitation can exceed 80 inches (2,000 mm) in the mountains, with snow often lying permanently around high peaks. The Danubian region has only modest rainfall (about 24 inches [600 mm] per year at Budapest), but the Dinaric Alps experience heavy cyclonic winter, as well as summer, rain.
Continental climate
The continental type of climate dominates a giant share of Europe, covering northern Ukraine, eastern Belarus, Russia, most of Finland, and northern Sweden. Winters—much colder and longer, with greater snow cover, than in western Europe—are coldest in the northeast, and summers are hottest in the southeast; the January to July mean temperatures range approximately from 50 to 70 °F (10 to 21 °C). Summer is the period of maximum rain, which is less abundant than in the west; in both the north and southeast of the East European Plain, precipitation reaches only between 10 and 20 inches (250 and 500 mm) annually. In parts of the south, the unreliability of rainfall combines with its relative scarcity to raise a serious aridity problem.
Mediterranean climate
The subtropical Mediterranean climate characterizes the coastlands of southern Europe, being modified inland (for example, in the Meseta Central, the Apennines, and the North Italian Plain) in response to elevation and aspect. The main features of that climatic region are mild and wet winters, hot and dry summers, and clear skies for much of the year, but marked regional variations occur between the lands of the western and the more southerly eastern basins of the Mediterranean; the former are affected more strongly by maritime air mass intrusions. Rainfall in southern Europe is significantly reduced in areas lying in the lee of rain-bearing westerlies; Rome has an annual mean of roughly 26 inches (660 mm), but Athens has only about 16 inches (400 mm).
The effects of climate
The local and regional effects of climate on the weathering, erosion, and transport of rocks clearly contribute much to the European landscape, and the length and warmth of the growing season, the amount and seasonal range of rainfall, and the incidence of frost affect the distribution of vegetation. Wild vegetation in its turn provides different habitats for animal life. Climate is also an important factor in the making of soils, and regional climatic variations help determine where crops are grown commercially. The winter freeze in northern and eastern Europe is another aspect of climate, and the spring thaw, by creating floods, impedes transport and harasses farmers. The snow cover of the more continental regions is useful to people, however, for it stores water for the fields and provides snow for winter sports and recreation.
In sum, in only a modest proportion of Europe does climate somewhat restrict human occupation and land use. Those areas include regions of high elevation and relief, such as the subarctic highlands of the Scandinavian Peninsula and Iceland, the Arctic areas along the White Sea of northern Russia, and the arid areas of interior Spain.