Western Europe experienced the hottest June on record amid intensifying heatwaves
Kyiv • UNN
Western Europe suffered its hottest June on record, with air temperatures 3.06°C above average. Wildfires are devastating France and Spain, while the UK enters its third heatwave.
Western Europe has suffered its hottest June on record, according to scientists, as the UK enters its third heatwave this year and wildfires ravage France and Spain, The Guardian reports, writes UNN.
Details
According to the EU's Copernicus climate monitoring service, the deadly June heatwave, driven by carbon pollution, pushed surface air temperatures in the region 3.06°C above the average of recent decades.
Globally, June 2026 was 0.56°C warmer than the 1991-2020 average and 1.39°C warmer than pre-industrial levels, making it the second warmest June on record, the agency found. The planet's oceans were hotter than scientists have ever seen.
"Together, these data reflect a climate system that continues to accumulate heat," said Samantha Burgess, a climate scientist at Copernicus. "The result is increasingly intense heatwaves, a persistently warm ocean, and growing risks for people, ecosystems, and infrastructure."
Western Europe is facing its third heatwave in six weeks, with widespread drought turning small wildfires into uncontrollable blazes. Copernicus noted that the series of heatwaves illustrates a "growing problem" posed by intensifying extreme temperatures.