Recently, the ongoing heat and drought has caused the water level of rivers and lakes in many parts of the Northern Hemisphere to drop significantly, and many river beds are exposed. The current drought conditions in the western United States have not been alleviated, and the water level of Lake Mead in the Colorado River basin has continued to drop to a level that does not support the opening of floodgates. The declining water levels of the Colorado River directly affect the drinking water, agricultural irrigation and power supply of about 40 million people in the basin.
The Rhine River, which flows through many European countries and is a major European shipping route, also suffers from declining water levels. Satellite images show that the width of some of the Rhine’s water courses has narrowed considerably compared to what it was before, due to falling water levels.
The Danube River, the first longest river in Western Europe, is also in the high temperature and drought, the water level has dropped significantly, the channel is blocked, the surrounding vegetation dried up.
Satellite images of the Loire River in France show that the exposed riverbed area is larger than the river surface area, and the vegetation around the river also shows a withered brown color.
Italy’s important food-producing region, the Po River basin, has also experienced the most severe drought in seven decades. In the satellite images, the hue around the Po river basin has changed from the original green color to the current withered yellow color.
