Editing Iceland (section)

===Climate===
{{main|Climate of Iceland|Tornadoes in Iceland}}

[[File:Iceland Köppen.svg|thumb|left|[[Köppen climate classification]] types of Iceland]]

The climate of Iceland's coast is [[subarctic climate|subarctic]]. The warm [[North Atlantic Current]] ensures generally higher annual temperatures than in most places of similar latitude in the world. Regions in the world with similar climates include the [[Aleutian Islands]], the [[Alaska Peninsula]], and [[Tierra del Fuego]], although these regions are closer to the equator. Despite its proximity to the Arctic, the island's coasts remain ice-free through the winter. Ice incursions are rare, with the last having occurred on the north coast in 1969.<ref>{{cite book |author=Lamb H. |year=1995 |title=Climate, History and the Modern World |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0415127356 }}</ref>

The climate varies between different parts of the island. Generally speaking, the south coast is warmer, wetter, and windier than the north. The Central Highlands are the coldest part of the country. Low-lying inland areas in the north are the aridest. Snowfall in winter is more common in the north than in the south.

The highest air temperature recorded was {{convert|30.5|°C|°F}} on 22 June 1939 at Teigarhorn on the southeastern coast. The lowest was {{convert|-38|°C|°F|1}} on 22 January 1918 at Grímsstaðir and Möðrudalur in the northeastern hinterland. The temperature records for Reykjavík are {{convert|26.2|°C|°F}} on 30 July 2008, and {{convert|-24.5|°C|°F|1}} on 21 January 1918.{{citation needed|date=November 2024}}

Due to [[climate change]], Iceland is experiencing faster [[glacial retreat]], changing vegetation patterns and shifting marine ecosystems.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ministry for the Environment in Iceland |date=March 2006 |title=Iceland's Fourth National Communication on Climate Change Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and Iceland's Report on Demonstrable Progress Under the Kyoto Protocol |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/227146843 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023132930/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/227146843_Recent_Climate_Change_Projected_Impacts_and_Adaptation_Capacity_in_Iceland |archive-date=23 October 2021 |access-date=2025-02-13 |website=ResearchGate |language=en |url-status=live }}</ref> Iceland's retreating glaciers have global and local consequences. Melting of Iceland's glaciers could raise sea levels by a centimeter,<ref name=":22">{{Cite web |last=Park |first=Vatnajokull National |title=Consequences of retreating glaciers |url=https://www.vatnajokulsthjodgardur.is/en/areas/melting-glaciers/glaciers-and-climate-change/consequences-of-retreating-glaciers |access-date=2022-10-05 |website=Vatnajokull National Park |language=en |archive-date=1 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230201100023/https://www.vatnajokulsthjodgardur.is/en/areas/melting-glaciers/glaciers-and-climate-change/consequences-of-retreating-glaciers |url-status=dead }}</ref> which could lead to erosion and flooding worldwide.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sea-Level Rise & Global Climate Change: A Review of Impacts to U.S. Coasts |url=https://www.c2es.org/document/sea-level-rise-global-climate-change-a-review-of-impacts-to-u-s-coasts/ |access-date=2022-10-11 |website=Center for Climate and Energy Solutions}}</ref>