The sun has been shining brightly for the last few weeks and there has been hardly any rain. As of April 1, there has been considerably less precipitation in large parts of Europe compared to the norm. The KNMI summarised this information in a number of maps that clearly show that there has been less rain than average in almost the whole of Europe.
Precipitation excess and shortage in Europe. Source: KNMI
According to the KNMI this dry situation was created by a divergent air pressure pattern. "Normally there is a mostly westerly flow in which regular depressions with bad weather pass by. This year the air pressure pattern and the weather that goes with it was clearly divergent. High pressure areas were often stuck in our area which prevented depressions from reaching us," writes the weather service on its website.
Besides there being little rain, it was also very sunny and warm for this time of the year. This mean there was a lot of evaporation. In the south the dry soil is in turn causing high temperatures.
Click here for the full KNMI report and a larger map
Click here for the full KNMI report and a larger map