As of: December 28, 2024 2:00 p.m
In many places in Germany the air is currently standing still. According to the German Weather Service, this causes fine dust to accumulate, which results in poorer air quality. This could last until New Year’s Eve.
An unusual weather situation over Germany is currently ensuring that pollutants in the air cannot escape. There is little exchange between the air layers, which is why fine dust accumulates in the lowlands, said meteorologist Christian Herold from the German Weather Service (DWD). This means bad air in many places.
In numerous places in the southern half of Germany, increased levels of health-threatening fine dust were measured on Saturday morning. In Kempten, Bavaria, for example, the particularly fine dust was a whopping 35 micrograms per cubic meter.
The Eichsfeld in Thuringia is covered with dense fog due to the inversion weather situation. Only the Rusteberg in the small town of Marth stands out.
Federal Environment Agency warns of the consequences of fine dust
In parts of Munich, Würzburg, Bamberg, Passau as well as in Tübingen, Kehl and Neuenburg in Baden-Württemberg as well as in Worms and Dresden, the values were also above the limit of 25 micrograms, as data from the Federal Environment Agency show.
“Sensitive people can experience adverse health effects. They should avoid physically strenuous activities outdoors,” recommends the Federal Environment Agency to those affected in these places. Inhaling fine dust is a health hazard. “The effects range from temporary impairment of the respiratory tract to an increased need for medication in asthmatics to respiratory diseases and cardiovascular problems.” Fine dust comes from vehicles, thermal power plants and fireplaces, among other things.
German Weather Service: Hardly at the moment Air mixing
Meteorologist Herold spoke of an inversion weather situation, i.e. a reversed weather situation. The upper air layers are currently warmer than the lower ones. It’s unusually warm in the mountains right now – with up to eleven degrees in the low mountain ranges. In the valleys and river lowlands, however, it is cold, sometimes with temperatures below zero. The air hardly mixes and the fine dust sits in the lower layer like under a bell.
According to the DWD, this will last until New Year’s Eve. “Then the weather situation changes, it becomes windier or even stormy,” says Herold. In the north, the wind is expected to come in time to blow away the fine dust that is created by the New Year’s Eve fireworks. “In the south we may have the problem of only light winds on New Year’s Eve.”
A low cloud layer, also called an inversion layer, lies above the high-rise buildings of Frankfurt. The reverse weather situation occurs when the upper air layers are warmer than the lower ones.
According to the Federal Environment Agency, tons of fine dust are released on New Year’s Eve through the burning of fireworks – this corresponds to around one percent of the total amount of fine dust released in Germany in a year. In many places, the pollution caused by bad air on New Year’s Eve is higher than anywhere else in the entire year.
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