The first two months of summer in western Europe have been the hottest on record, the European Union\u2019s climate monitor said Monday, as the continent grapples with devastating wildfires and braces for yet another heatwave.<\/p>\n
The average temperature for June and July was 21.62 degrees Celsius (70.9 Fahrenheit), about 2.79 degrees above the average, and surpassing the previous heat record set in 2022, said the Copernicus climate change service.<\/a><\/p>\n July was also the hottest month ever logged for the world\u2019s non-polar oceans, Copernicus said, with record high temperatures set along the Atlantic and western Mediterranean, putting sea life and coastal communities at risk. The conditions were partly fueled by the so-called \u201cSuper\u201d El Ni\u00f1o<\/a> weather pattern developing in the pacific.<\/p>\n The continent has been hit by a string of deadly heatwaves, with more hot temperatures forecast for this week \u2014 as parts of Europe endure their fifth heat wave of the summer. Heat has killed more than 25,000 people across Europe this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.<\/p>\n Europe is the world\u2019s fastest-warming continent but is particularly ill-equipped to withstand heat, due to older infrastructure and a lack of air conditioning.<\/p>\n The scorching temperatures and persistent droughts in June and July mutually reinforced each other to create a hot weather spiral, according to Samantha Burgess, strategic lead for climate at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts.<\/p>\n \u201cAs soils dry out, they lose their ability to provide natural cooling, allowing heat to build more readily,\u201d Burgess said, adding that it was \u201ca clear example of how climate change is intensifying heat extremes.\u201d<\/p>\n Surface soil moisture levels across western Europe in July 2026 were also \u201csignificantly lower\u201d than in July 2022, the last summer the region saw extreme drought, with \u201cexceptional to record deficits\u201d for rain and soil moisture in France, Spain and parts of Germany and the United Kingdom, the scientists found.<\/p>\n The record-breaking summer heat has fostered conditions for Europe\u2019s record-setting wildfires, which have displaced hundreds of thousands of people and burned more than 1.23 million acres of land,<\/a> mainly in Spain, France and Italy, according to an August 6 report by the EU.<\/p>\n Beyond the scorched land, the fires have also had a broader effect across the continent, increasing emissions and disrupting air quality, said Laurence Rouil, director of the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service.<\/p>\n \u201cLarger fires produce more smoke and inject it higher into the atmosphere, meaning it can travel further and impact air quality not only locally, but across the wider region,\u201d Rouil said.<\/p>\n Severe droughts have also sucked the water from Europe\u2019s major rivers, particularly the Seine, the Rhine and the Danube, threatening the continent\u2019s energy supply.<\/p>\n