In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that, in the first half of 2026, solar irradiance was broadly above average across Europe, the United States, Southeast Asia, South America, and Central Africa, driven by shifting atmospheric patterns transitioning from early-year blocking and polar vortex disruption to developing El Niño conditions. Elsewhere, conditions were more mixed: Canada, Mexico, South Africa, North Africa, parts of Western Russia and Central Asia saw 5–10% deficits, while Asia, Australia, and parts of the Americas experienced strong regional variability influenced by cloud, rainfall, cyclones, dust, and smoke events.