Ocean heat records broken as hottest July temperature recorded
Global oceans recorded their hottest July on record, partly fuelled by developing El Niño conditions, as wildfires continue to ravage western Europe.
The world's oceans recorded their hottest temperatures ever in July, with an average sea surface temperature of 20.96C, surpassing the previous July high of 20.89C set in 2023. This record-breaking heat is partly attributed to the developing El Niño conditions in the Pacific, which, when combined with human-driven global warming, can cause temperature spikes and more extreme weather.
July 2026 was also the joint second-warmest July globally on record, with temperatures 1.47C above the pre-industrial average. The unusually high sea temperatures, especially in the tropical Pacific, have led to widespread marine heatwaves along the Atlantic coast and in the western Mediterranean. The combination of extreme heat and drought in western Europe has resulted in record-breaking temperatures, with the average for June and July reaching 21.62C, 2.79C above the average.
Brief written by urgent.news from BBC Science's own syndicated text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
