The world’s seas and oceans recorded their hottest ever July according to a study released on Monday (10 August), as air temperature also broke records in Europe.
Extra-polar sea surface temperatures reached all-time July highs this year at 20.96 °C according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change service, overtaking the previous July record from 2023 of 20.89 °C.
The Atlantic coast and western Mediterranean were most affected, as well as the tropical Pacific, due to El Niño, the warm phase of a natural climate cycle that raises temperatures temporarily in the area.
The new research found the average air temperature in western Europe to beat the previous record for June-July set in 2022.
Western Europe bore the biggest brunt of rising temperatures, with the gravest heat levels in France, Spain, England, and Ireland, hitting 2.79 °C above average.
