Lightning affects European territory on an average of 350 days per year, meaning that there is at least one lightning strike somewhere in Europe every day.
August is Western Europe’s most lightning-prone month.
Lightning affects European territory on an average of 350 days per year, meaning that there is at least one lightning strike somewhere in Europe every day.
August is Western Europe’s most lightning-prone month.
In terms of lightning density, the three countries where lightning has been most frequent in Western Europe over the last ten years are Italy, Switzerland and France.
In Western Europe, the top 3 most lightning months in the last 10 years are: August 2018, August 2022 and May 2018.
Indeed, August 2018 recorded more than 760,000 cloud-to-ground lightning strikes in Western Europe, equivalent to the 2018 annual record in France.
2 record days were recorded in 2018 in Western Europe compared to the last 10 years: 09 August 2018 with nearly 84,000 cloud-to-ground lightning flashes and 27 May 2018 with more than 76,700 cloud-to-ground lightning flashes.
Twice a year, Météorage draws up an inventory of lightning activity in Europe (the annual summary and the first-half summary).
To look up the lightning strike summary for the current year or previous years free of charge:
*Western Europe currently covers the following countries: France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom.