June and July hottest on record in Western Europe, monitor says
The Copernicus Climate Change Service says historically low rainfall has worsened the situation in several countries.
Around 900 million people in certain regions experienced the hottest July on record in 2026, according to AFP's analysis of Copernicus data. Thirty-three countries recorded their highest July temperatures since records began, with well-resourced nations like France and Spain confirming the records independently through Meteo-France and AEMET meteorological services.
The dataset used, provided by the European Copernicus programme, covers hourly global observations since 1970, including satellite data, weather stations, and climate models. The Sahel region alone, home to over 400 million people, saw temperatures more than 2 degrees Celsius above average, with countries like Mauritania, Niger, and Burkina Faso breaking their monthly heat records.
Meanwhile, in eastern Africa, Sudan, Kenya, and Ethiopia also broke records. The same was true for Chad and Sudan, where July temperatures were more than 2 degrees Celsius above the 1981-2010 average. Scientists warn that episodes of extreme heat have become nearly ten times more likely since 2015 due to human-driven climate change.
The naturally occurring El Nino climate pattern is further amplifying unprecedented temperatures in Central America and northern South America, affecting approximately 110 million people. Europe also faced record-breaking heat, with France recording temperatures 3.8 degrees Celsius above the 1991-2020 normal, leading to devastating wildfires.
Written by urgent.news from Malay Mail's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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