Publication details
European floods during the winter 1783/1784: scenarios of an extreme event during the "Little Ice Age"
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2010 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Theor. Appl. Climatol. |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | http://www.springerlink.com/content/0w541g348867u448/?p=f875454dcf6d4e879b09c34578c13d33&pi=12 |
| Field | Atmosphere sciences, meteorology |
| Keywords | Europe; floods; extreme events; Little Ice Age |
| Description | The Lakagígar eruption in Iceland during 1783 was followed by the severe winter of 1783/1784, which was characterised by low temperatures, frozen soils, icebound watercourses and high rates of snow accumulation across much of Europe. Sudden warming coupled with rainfall led to rapid snowmelt, resulting in a series of flooding phases across much of Europe. The second phase at the turn of February-March 1784 was of greater extent, generated by the melting of an unusually large accumulation of snow and river ice, affecting catchments across France and Central Europe (where it is still considered as one of the most disastrous known floods), throughout the Danube catchment and in southeast Central Europe. The impacts and consequences of the floods on both local and regional scales were reflected in the economic and societal responses, material damage and human losses. The winter of 1783/1784 can be considered as typical, if severe, for the Little Ice Age period across much of Europe. |
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