The EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service said Thursday that August 2026 tied July 2023 as the hottest month ever recorded globally, with an average surface air temperature of 16.96C, or 1.65C above pre-industrial levels.

The EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service said Thursday that August 2026 tied July 2023 as the hottest month ever recorded globally, with an average surface air temperature of 16.96C, or 1.65C above pre-industrial levels.

It was the first month since November 2025 in which global temperatures exceeded 1.5C above the 1850-1900 average, the threshold nearly 200 countries pledged to pursue under the 2015 Paris Agreement.

It was the first month since November 2025 in which global temperatures exceeded 1.5C above the 1850-1900 average, the threshold nearly 200 countries pledged to pursue under the 2015 Paris Agreement.

Sea surface temperatures outside the polar regions averaged 21.07C in August, the highest on record for the month and joint-highest across all months alongside March 2024, Copernicus said.

Sea surface temperatures outside the polar regions averaged 21.07C in August, the highest on record for the month and joint-highest across all months alongside March 2024, Copernicus said.

The month capped Western Europe's warmest summer on record, surpassing 2003, with heat that began in May and drought conditions in the UK, France, Hungary, Romania and Serbia, and low flows on the Rhine and Danube.

The month capped Western Europe's warmest summer on record, surpassing 2003, with heat that began in May and drought conditions in the UK, France, Hungary, Romania and Serbia, and low flows on the Rhine and Danube.

Samantha Burgess of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts said the data show climate change is driving extremes "across both the atmosphere and the oceans," citing melting roads, buckled rail lines and school closures.

Samantha Burgess of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts said the data show climate change is driving extremes "across both the atmosphere and the oceans," citing melting roads, buckled rail lines and school closures.

The European Commission said Monday that global greenhouse gas emissions rose 0.7% last year to a record 54 billion tons of CO2 equivalent, with U.S. emissions up 2.2% and EU emissions down 0.2% in 2025.

The European Commission said Monday that global greenhouse gas emissions rose 0.7% last year to a record 54 billion tons of CO2 equivalent, with U.S. emissions up 2.2% and EU emissions down 0.2% in 2025.

August 2026 Ties Hottest Month Ever Recorded

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August 2026 Ties Hottest Month Ever Recorded

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