June-July 2026 were the hottest months on record in Western Europe
The Copernicus Climate Change Service reports that June and July 2026 were the hottest such period on record in Western Europe, while Austria and Slovakia set all-time heat records in early August.
The EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service has reported that the average temperature in Western Europe in June-July 2026 reached +21.62 degrees Celsius, exceeding the 1991-2020 average by 2.79 degrees. According to Deutsche Welle, these two months together were the hottest ever recorded in Western Europe. At the same time, Eastern Europe and Scandinavia experienced a noticeably cooler start to summer.
Copernicus also pointed to an unusually long stretch of hot weather in Western Europe that has persisted since late spring, with four heatwaves recorded since May — an exceptionally high number for the region.
Ocean temperatures hit record highs
The news agency KNA reports that in July the world's oceans, excluding polar regions, warmed to record levels. One contributing factor is the El Niño phenomenon in the tropical Pacific, which forecasts suggest will intensify in the coming months. Strong heatwaves were also recorded in the Atlantic Ocean and the western Mediterranean, with rising temperatures damaging coastal communities and marine ecosystems.
The average sea surface temperature between 60 degrees south and north latitude reached +20.96 degrees in July, surpassing the previous record for the month of +20.89 degrees set in 2023.
Austria and Slovakia see hottest day on record
On Wednesday, August 5, Austria and Slovakia recorded their hottest day since observations began. According to Austria's national weather service, GeoSphere Austria, the temperature in the town of Bad Deutsch-Altenburg in Lower Austria climbed to +41.2 degrees. In the southern Slovak municipality of Kamenica nad Hronom, near the Hungarian border, +41.4 degrees was recorded the same day.
In Vienna, the Austrian capital, the air temperature broke the national record on August 4, reaching +41 degrees. Extreme heat and drought are increasingly affecting people and nature in the country — some communities are struggling with water shortages, while shipping on the Danube and other rivers has been partially halted due to low water levels. The national weather service also warned of extreme heat stress for vulnerable population groups.
