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The Netherlands now drier than record year 1976

The Netherlands now drier than record year 1976

It’s official; it’s now drier than it was on July 25, 1976. Back then, the average precipitation deficit across the country was around 257mm. This year, the deficit is at 261mm.

Dry and hot Dutch summer

So far, the Dutch summer has been dry and hot, with the extreme heat even triggering a code orange warning. Whether or not the all-time drought record from 1976 will be broken depends on the weather in August. In 1976, the precipitation deficit had increased to 363mm by the end of August. According to Weeronline, the precipitation deficit is forecast to increase this year.

Despite the predicted showers and storms on Friday in the late evening and Saturday, the dry, warm weather in the Netherlands is expected to stay on for a while. At the start of August, a precipitation deficit of 300mm is forecast. As of August 4, the weather forecast becomes uncertain. A continuation of the drought however, is likely.

Top 10 driest years in the Netherlands

In the past, the precipitation deficit in dry summers reached its peak in August. According to data from the KNMI, the following are the driest summers to date. Precipitation deficit numbers are stated next to the year. This year’s position is based on the precipitation deficit figures measured on July 25.

  1. 1976 – 363mm
  2. 1959 – 354mm
  3. 1911 – 328mm
  4. 1921 – 322mm
  5. 1947 – 299mm
  6. 2018 – 261mm
  7. 1929 – 250mm
  8. 1949 – 238mm
  9. 1989 – 235mm
  10. 2003 – 230mm
Mina Solanki

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Mina Solanki

Completed her Master's degree at the University of Groningen and worked as a translator before joining IamExpat. She loves to read and has a particular interest in Greek mythology. In...

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Kailin Murray 05:09 | 3 August 2018

Confused as to why the title and intro say it’s record breaking but the table shows it as sixth??

enrico.gueli 17:45 | 6 August 2018

The author looked at the graph in reverse: 1976 is the most-wet year, not the most-dry. The driest year was and is still 2003. But maybe looking at the source data may give more information.