Zoran Vakula: Summer was unusually warm, and autumn and winter may follow suit

Croatia has just experienced one of its warmest summers in recent records, with August temperatures far above the 1991-2020 climate average, meteorologist Zoran Vakula said.

August was exceptionally warm in most locations and reached record levels in many places. Rijeka was an exception among the country’s largest cities, recording its second-warmest August after 2024.

From June 1 to Aug. 31, most of Croatia also received less rain than average. Split recorded more precipitation locally, largely because of a rainy July. Vakula said Split had its third-warmest summer, behind 2003 and 2024, while Osijek and Zagreb recorded their second-warmest summers. New seasonal temperature records were set in Zavižan, Gospić, Rijeka, Split, Dubrovnik and other locations, generally by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius.

“

At the same time, Split's average summer air temperature was the third warmest in a row, immediately behind 2003 and the record-setting 2024, while this year's summer in Osijek and Zagreb was the second warmest.

The period from Jan. 1 through Aug. 31 ranked near the top of the warmest years. Preliminary figures did not surpass 2024, but placed the period mostly just behind that record. Zagreb and Osijek recorded their third-warmest such periods, with 2007 warmer in some locations.

Vakula expects both autumn and winter to continue the sequence of seasons that are at least slightly warmer than average. He said larger deviations are also more likely, while noting that colder spells can still occur. Those periods, he said, will probably not be as intense as the warmer ones.

“

Of course, this does not rule out occasional colder periods, but they probably will not be as intense as the warmer ones.