No, it has never been this hot in Western Europe: June 2026 broke a record that we cannot ignore

What we are experiencing is unprecedented heat. We have noticed that the temperatures of the last few weeks have been infernal, but now confirmation comes from new data from Copernicus, the European Earth monitoring program, according to which in June 2026 Western Europe experienced the warmest June in its history, even surpassing the infamous 2003 record. And it was the second warmest June ever recorded for the entire continent.

The exceptional temperatures have broken records in various countries. France, which also had a heavy death toll (including many who drowned in rivers) and England recorded the hottest June ever observed, while countries such as Germany and the Netherlands remained in second place in the historical ranking. Absolute daily maximum temperature records were also broken in several areas of Europe.

Meanwhile, globally, June 2026 ranked as the second warmest June on record, with an average temperature of 16.56°C, approximately 1.39°C above pre-industrial levels. A figure slightly lower than the 2024 record, but still sufficient to confirm the persistence of global warming.

Western Europe also surpasses the 2003 record

The most critical situation was recorded in Western Europe, where the average monthly temperature reached 20.74 °C, 3.05 °C above the average for the period 1991-2020, setting a new absolute record and surpassing that of 2003.

The heat wave hit Spain and Portugal in particular, where thermometers reached 46°C, while the perceived heat index approached 48°C. France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the Benelux countries also recorded anomalies of between 3 and 5 °C above normal, with temperatures persisting well above climate averages.

Even the sea is getting hotter

The temperatures that worry scientists have not only affected land. According to what was reported by the Copernicus bulletin, which bases its climate analyzes on the ERA5 dataset available since 1979, the average surface temperature of the extra-polar oceans reached 20.86 °C, the highest value ever recorded for a month of June.

The situation in the western Mediterranean is particularly critical, affected by an unprecedented marine heat wave. Here the surface temperature reached 27°C, 3.7°C above average, a condition that puts marine ecosystems under pressure, causing alien and invasive species to proliferate and contributing to extreme meteorological events along the coasts, such as tornadoes.

Sea surface temperatures in most of the equatorial Pacific were well above average, reflecting the development of the El Niño phenomenon. – Coprnicus experts warn – According to the World Meteorological Organization, the current El Niño event is expected to intensify rapidly in the coming months.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO). more than 200 thousand people have died due to abnormal heat on the European continent in the last four years. The climate crisis presents us with the bill and literally takes our breath away. But there are still those who persist in denying it.