World Just Logged Its Second-Warmest July Ever, UN Warns

The planet has just logged its second-warmest July ever recorded, the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) has confirmed, as extreme heat, drought and wildfires battered multiple regions at once.

July 2026 was only marginally cooler than July 2024 – by just 0.01°C – so the two months are considered the joint-second warmest Julys on record, behind the record set in July 2023. The global average surface air temperature reached 16.90°C: 0.67°C above the 1991–2020 average and 1.47°C above the estimated pre-industrial level.

Second-Warmest July: What the Numbers Show

Because July is typically the warmest calendar month of the year, Copernicus notes that July 2026 was also the joint-second-warmest month ever recorded globally. The US NOAA reached a similar conclusion, calling July 2026 and July 2024 more likely than not the warmest months on record since 1850.

Global sea surface temperatures reached a new monthly high for July, driven in part by strengthening El Niño conditions in the Pacific. Record July sea surface temperatures were also recorded along Europe’s Atlantic coast and in the western Mediterranean, where widespread marine heatwaves developed.

Europe Scorched: Heatwaves, Wildfires and Failing Rivers

“July 2026 was the third consecutive month of exceptional heat in western Europe,” said Samantha Burgess, strategic lead for climate at ECMWF, noting that persistent high-pressure systems trapped heat over the region while dried-out soils lost their natural cooling ability – “a clear example of how climate change is intensifying heat extremes.”

Prolonged hot and dry conditions spread intense wildfires across the region. River flows were much lower than average or exceptionally low – particularly the Seine, Rhine and Danube – straining water supply, irrigation, river transport and energy production in several countries.

The Call for Early Warnings

The World Meteorological Organization community says the continuing series of high-impact weather and climate events underscores the need for reliable forecasts and early-warning systems to limit cascading impacts on societies and economies. Read related reporting in our El Niño heat-deaths study and climate coverage.

The full figures are published in the Copernicus July 2026 climate bulletin and summarised by China Daily Asia.