January was the warmest month in history in the province of Malaga

With an average of 12.7 degrees Celsius recorded across the whole of Malaga province, January 2024 hit an all-time record as the hottest in history.

The last four weeks were more than 3 degrees above average and 2.2 degrees above the record of a year ago, according to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet).

Cause for concern

To date, the hottest month at the start of a year was in 2016, when the average of 11.5 degrees was already a cause for concern. At the opposite extreme, in 1972, 1985  and 1992, the provincial average for the first month of the year was no more than 8 degrees.

The first day of 2024 opened with a high of 21 degrees, with clear skies for a sunny and warm day. Over the following weeks, meteorologists began to talk about the establishment of a “powerful ridge” in the middle and upper layers of the atmosphere. And a powerful anticyclone kept any rain away from most of Andalucia during the Christmas period.

Spring not winter

The peak was reached on January 26 with an unusually high maximum temperature of over 27 degrees in Coín, one of the highest temperatures in Spain. The figures recorded in the rest of the country were also more typical of spring than mid-winter.