Warnings came one after another! The coldest times in 50-60 years will be experienced.

The General Directorate of Meteorology announced that air temperatures will decrease by 10 to 15 degrees across the country starting from Saturday, with some areas in the Black Sea Region experiencing a drop of up to 18 degrees, falling below seasonal norms. The expected cold wave has been effective throughout the week. Prof. Dr. Doğan Yaşar, a member of the TÜBA Environment, Biodiversity, and Climate Change Working Group, made statements regarding the issue.

"THERE IS AN INCREDIBLE COLD"

Prof. Dr. Doğan Yaşar, who noted that the harsh winter has arrived early this year, said, "Winter has come quite early this year. Especially in İzmir, the weather has been very cold as of today. The average temperature in İzmir in November is around 14 degrees. It has dropped to about 7.5-8 degrees these days. There is an incredible cold. All of Turkey is very cold. Snow has come very early to all of Turkey. It snowed very early in places like Ankara and Van. This is not a surprise. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) of the USA announced that this winter will be harsh. Starting from the beginning of 2024, all months except May will exceed the average," he said.

"NATURE WILL DEFINITELY BALANCE ITSELF"

Prof. Dr. Yaşar stated, "Nature balances itself. If we have gone through a very hot period, a cold period follows or vice versa. Nature will definitely balance itself. Temperature or cold weather cannot just run away. After 2020, a rare event occurred in 2021 and 2022. It was very dry for three years. In 2020, there was a 12% deficit in rainfall, 9% in 2021, and 12% in 2022. All our dams have emptied. Our dams are still not full. Then Super El Niño exploded. Nature tried to compensate for that three-year deficit with Super El Niño. There were floods in Dubai, the Sahara, Brazil, and Europe," he said.

"I BELIEVE WE WILL HAVE A RAINY YEAR"

Prof. Dr. Yaşar, who noted that the cold is influenced by La Niña, said, "I think it will be one of the coldest times in the last 50-60 years. It seems so according to the data. On the other hand, our dams have emptied significantly. Today, the Tahtalı Dam has dropped to about 11%. This is a serious decrease. I believe that after this cooling, rainfall will return to normal after February. After that, I believe we will have a wonderful rainy year. There is currently snowfall. This is very nice. It bothers us, but at least it will feed the underground water," he said.