Western Europe records hottest June on record

European scientists have confirmed that June in Western Europe was the warmest on record. The average air temperature was +20.74 °C, which is more than 3 °C higher than the average for June in the period 1991-2020.

Reuters reports this with reference to the monthly bulletin of the EUʼs Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S).

Meanwhile, last month was the second warmest June on record globally, and European scientists also recorded the highest sea surface temperatures in June since records began.

Western Europe has already experienced three intense heat waves in recent months, and Spain and Portugal were hit by another one this week.

According to the World Meteorological Organization, greenhouse gas emissions, mainly from burning coal, oil and gas, have raised the planetʼs average temperature by about 1.4°C above pre-industrial levels in the 19th century. This higher baseline means temperatures can now reach higher peaks during heat waves.

C3S temperature data covers the period since 1940, and for comparison they are compared with global temperature records dating back to 1850.

• In France, heatwaves on June 24-26 led to over 1 000 deaths, while in Spain, over 800 weather-related deaths were recorded. In Germany, record heatwaves at the end of June resulted in over 5 000 deaths. In Italy, heavy rains, floods and landslides were recorded in the Alto Adige region due to a sudden change in weather. The heatwave then spread to eastern Europe.
• Earlier, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reported that Europe is the part of the world that is warming the fastest: twice as fast as the global average.

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