Europe is waking up to a climate-altered summer after unprecedented May temperatures delivered a brutal foretaste of what scientists are calling the continent’s “new reality.”
Extreme temperatures across Europe are fast becoming the “new reality,” according to data released by researchers from the EU’s Earth observation programme, Copernicus. Across much of the continent, the wind chill index – or “feels like” temperature – climbed to 35–40°C in May. Last month broke several national records within the EU and ranked as the second-warmest May on record, trailing only May 2024.
The heat hit the United Kingdom, France, Ireland and Portugal especially hard. In Spain, 101 people died last month as a direct result of high temperatures. Meanwhile, France and the UK have seen a rise in drowning incidents, as more people seek relief from the searing heat in rivers, lakes and seas.
Scientists note that the speed of the transition from cool spring conditions to extreme summer-like heat this year has left little time for adaptation – for people, agriculture or ecosystems alike.
Europe remains the fastest-warming continent, owing in part to its proximity to the Arctic, where the melting of ice and snow exposes darker ground that absorbs solar radiation and further heats the air. Researchers also warn that unusually high sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific are exacerbating the climate crisis, driving more extreme weather events around the globe.
