The climate in the Nordic region is warming considerably faster than the rest of the world, according to data reviewed by the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI).
Temperatures in Finland were last year on average 3.4 degrees warmer than in the pre-industrial era, and 2024 was the fourth warmest year on record.
This was reflected by the fact that Finland saw a record number of 'hot' days during 2024 — when temperatures exceed the threshold of 25 degrees — with a total of 71 throughout the calendar year.
"It has long been known that the higher latitudes we are, the faster the temperatures rise. Here, the changes in heat are greater than closer to the tropics," explained Pauli Jokinen, a meteorologist at the FMI.
Although temperatures vary from year to year, Jokinen added, peaks are becoming higher and colder years are milder — leading to the average temperature rising.
From cold winters to hot summers
Prior to the industrial revolution, it was quite common for the average annual temperature in Finland to remain below zero degrees. In recent years, however, the average temperature is almost always above zero — and in the record warm year of 2020 it rose to close to 5 degrees.
Last year was the hottest on record globally, with the increase in the global average temperature exceeding the critical limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius.
In 2024, Finland saw the coldest winter of the millennium so far, which was then followed by a record hot summer.
"It is difficult to say how much climate change affects it from a single weather phenomenon, but we know from studies that climate change increases the likelihood of long heat waves in particular," Jokinen said.
Last year's average temperature was moderated somewhat by the exceptionally cold start to 2024, with the first week of January up to 15 degrees colder than normal for that time of year — with a bone-chilling record of -44.3 degrees Celsius set in Finnish Lapland during that cold snap.
"It's actually quite typical for the Finnish climate. The weather here is changeable, and the prevailing weather conditions can change every few weeks and go from one extreme to the other," Jokinen said.
FMI: Finland must prepare for heavy rains, floods
The Finnish Climate Change Panel warned in 2021 that the country must prepare for more heavy rainfall and even flooding as climate change takes effect.
Jokinen noted that there can be a lot of regional variation in rainfall — for example, last summer the west saw significantly more rainfall than the east — but in the long term, Finland can expect more rain and flooding in every season.
He added that climate change is also increasing the chances of Finland seeing extreme weather phenomena, such as severe heatwaves and thunderstorms.
Hurricane-force winds were recorded off Finland's west coast for the first time in November, with wind speeds reaching 33.5 meters per second, although Jokinen said there is currently not enough data to accurately assess the potential impact climate change might have on Finnish storms.