Science & health
August ties hottest month on record as strengthening El Niño adds heat
August tied July 2023 as the hottest month ever recorded, according to the EU climate service, with temperatures 1.65C above pre-industrial levels. Human-caused warming and a strengthening El Niño contributed to the heat, while western Europe experienced its warmest summer. Researchers expect El Niño’s largest global temperature effects over the coming year, raising the prospect of further records. A single month above 1.5C does not mean the long-term warming threshold has been permanently crossed.
Editorial summary · Publisher article
What matters
- Copernicus reported record air temperatures, record ocean heat and western Europe’s warmest summer.
- The UK recorded its hottest summer in a series beginning in 1884.
- The Met Office estimated that human-caused climate change made the UK summer record around 130 times more likely.
Context & caveats
- El Niño is still strengthening; its eventual intensity and future temperature effects remain projections.
Why this made the edition
The report attributes temperature findings to the EU climate service, explains the climate mechanism and distinguishes a monthly threshold exceedance from sustained warming.
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