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June-July record heat
Western Europe’s heat waves toppled the June–July temperature record set in 2022, with Copernicus reporting a June–July average temperature of 21.62°C.
“In Western Europe, the average temperature record for the June-July period hit 21.62°C”
Copernicus said the extreme heat began in May and contributed to major wildfires, prolonged drought, and new national temperature records across the region, along with thousands of projected heat-related deaths.
Globally, the same Copernicus reporting placed July 2026 among the warmest on record, with a global average surface air temperature of 16.90°C and a sea-surface temperature average of 20.96°C for July.
Samantha Burgess, strategic lead for climate at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, said persistent high-pressure systems trapped heat over western Europe and that “As soils dry out, they lose their ability to provide natural cooling, allowing heat to build more readily.”
Heat, drought, and fires
Copernicus linked the Western Europe record to drought and wildfire impacts, saying the intense heat since May has caused numerous wildfires and a prolonged drought.
Euronews reported that the June–July average temperature record set in 2022 has been surpassed, and it tied the heat to Copernicus’s finding that last month saw the highest average sea surface temperature ever recorded for July in the oceans outside the polar sea-ice regions.
Euronews also quoted Burgess saying, “Persistent high-pressure systems trapped heat over Western Europe, and the extreme temperatures also amplified widespread drought.”
In La Croix’s account of the same Copernicus bulletin, the paper said river flows were “exceptionally low,” notably on the Seine, the Rhine, and the Danube, and that these low levels increased pressure on water supply, irrigation, aquatic ecosystems, river transport, and energy production.
What comes next
Copernicus reporting described a global backdrop in which 2026 still has time to catch up, with ABC News saying climate statistics show 2026 is the third-hottest year so far, behind 2024 and 2025.
“Thanks to the one-two punch of accelerated human-caused global warming and a supersized El Niño”
ABC News tied the outlook to “the one-two punch of accelerated human-caused global warming and a supersized El Niño,” and said scientists warned there is an increasing chance that by the end of the year, 2026 could become the hottest year on record.
La Croix quoted Carlo Buontempo, director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service, saying, “We haven’t seen a climate like this in our lifetimes and perhaps not since the dawn of our civilization,” as it described the record June–July warmth and the persistence of heat.
The same La Croix report said the ocean warmth reached “exceptionally high levels” across much of the tropical Pacific and that El Niño conditions are expected to intensify further in the coming months, while also stating that “the main driver of this warming—as we know—resides in the greenhouse gases” emitted by humanity.
