Of course, for a climatologist, a period of 23 years is certainly not enough to determine a country’s climate on this basis. Nevertheless, a comparison of weather from the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century clearly shows the direction of change.
A separate article discusses at length the weather Iceland actually had between 2000 and 2022 (see Weather in Iceland – temperature, wind, precipitation).
The year 2000 is actually still the 20th century, but compare the data shown there to the results from the end of the 20th century: the years 1977-1999 (that is also 23 years). From the comparison it is clear that Iceland used to be (still) more inaccessible: colder and noticeably windier.
The satellite photo in the header of this article comes from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission: European Union, Copernicus Sentinel-2 imagery. The full photo, with the front of the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier above Jokulsarlon marked for several years back:
The extent of the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier (by Jokulsarlon) over the last decades
source: European Union, Copernicus Sentinel-2 imagery
Changes in air temperature in Iceland
own analysis based on 1977-2022 data from Veðurstofa Íslands, vedur.is
Perhaps (even) more telling is the chart of the lowest recorded temperatures. The minima recorded in the 1977-1999 period were as much as 5.5 °C (9.9°F) lower than in the last “nearly a quarter century” (chart below). The record difference on the chart (March) was as much as 11.3 °C (20.3°F).
own analysis based on 1977-2022 data from Veðurstofa Íslands, vedur.is
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Changes in wind strength in Iceland
The recorded average wind speed, on the other hand, is now just over 6 km/h (3.7 mph) lower. Again: 6 km/h may look inconspicuous, but in relative terms it is a drop of more than 30%!
own analysis based on 1977-2022 data from Veðurstofa Íslands, vedur.is
