The average temperature globally for August was 1.29\u00b0C above pre-industrial times, says climate monitor
\n PARIS
\nDevastating wildfires and blistering heatwaves during the world\u2019s third-hottest August on record underscored the urgency of tackling climate change and preparing for its deadly consequences, the European global warming monitor said Tuesday.
\nSouthwest Europe wilted through a third summer heatwave, fires tore through Spain and Portugal, while many parts of Asia experienced above-average temperatures during a scorching month that neared record highs.
\nThe world\u2019s oceans, which help regulate Earth\u2019s climate by absorbing excess heat from the atmosphere, were also close to record high temperatures for the month. Hotter seas are linked to worsening weather extremes.
\n\u201cWith the world\u2019s (oceans) also remaining unusually warm, these events underline not only the urgency of reducing emissions but also the critical need to adapt to more frequent and intense climate extremes,\u201d said Samantha Burgess, strategic lead for climate at the EU\u2019s Copernicus Climate Change Service.
\nGlobal temperatures have been stoked ever higher by humanity\u2019s emissions of planet-heating gases, largely from fossil fuels burned on a massive scale since the industrial revolution.
\nCopernicus takes these measurements using billions of satellite and weather readings, both on land and at sea, and their data extends back to 1940.
\nThe average temperature globally for August was 1.29 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times, marginally cooler than the monthly record set in 2023 and tied with 2024.
\nSuch incremental rises may appear small, but scientists warn that is already destabilising the climate and making storms, floods and other disasters fiercer and more frequent.
\nIn its monthly bulletin, Copernicus said that western Europe experienced the continent\u2019s most pronounced above-average temperatures, with southwest France and the Iberian Peninsula particularly affected.
\nSpain suffered a 16-day heatwave that caused more than 1,100 deaths, according to the Carlos III Health Institute. Wildfires in Spain and Portugal forced thousands to evacuate.
\nLast week, scientists said human-caused climate change made the hot, dry and windy conditions that fanned the blazes 40 times more likely.
\nOutside Europe, temperatures were most above average across Siberia, parts of Antarctica, China, the Korean Peninsula, Japan and the Middle East.
\nRecord-breaking ocean temperatures were measured in the North Atlantic to the west of France and the United Kingdom in August.
\nAcross the Mediterranean, the picture was mixed and less extreme than 2024.
\nThe UK, Japan and South Korea sweltered this year through the hottest summers since each country began keeping records, their respective weather agencies announced earlier this month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The average temperature globally for August was 1.29\u00b0C above pre-industrial times, says climate monitor PARIS Devastating wildfires and blistering heatwaves during the world\u2019s third-hottest August on record underscored the urgency of tackling climate change and preparing for its deadly consequences, the European global warming monitor said Tuesday. Southwest Europe wilted through a third summer heatwave, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":501919,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-501892","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n