A heatwave in Europe has broken several temperature records, the UN weather and climate agency reported on Friday.
According to the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), 24 June was the hottest day on record in France, breaking the record set the previous day, with a national average temperature of 30°C. The night-time temperature also set a new national record of 22°C.
Spain recorded its hottest days in June on record on 23 and 24 June – in some places, temperatures significantly exceeded 40 degrees Celsius. The UK broke its June temperature record for three days running, notably recording 36.4 degrees in southern England on 25 June.
In the 50 years since the historic heatwave of 1976, Europe as a whole has warmed by around two degrees. “This is the continent that is warming the fastest, and extreme temperatures have also risen,” said John Kennedy, head of the WMO’s Climate Information Division.
According to one of the WMO’s regional European climate monitoring centres, led by the German Weather Service (DWD), the heatwave, which has moved in from the Iberian Peninsula, will spread to much of Western, Central and Southern Europe over the next two weeks.
Temperatures are expected to be 3–10°C above the weekly average for this time of year. Absolute daily maximum temperatures above 35°C and daily minimum temperatures above 20°C (tropical nights) are expected in many parts of Europe over the next few days.