August 2026 ties July 2023 as Earth's hottest month on record at 1.65C above pre-industrial levels

Global temperature records

August 2026 tied July 2023 as the hottest month recorded on Earth, according to data released by the European Union Copernicus Climate Change Service. Global surface air temperatures averaged 16.96 degrees Celsius (62.53 degrees Fahrenheit), which technically measured 0.01 degrees Celsius above the previous July 2023 high but sits within the margin of measurement uncertainty. The global average sat 1.65 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial benchmark for 1850 to 1900. This is the first month to exceed the 1.5-degree threshold since November 2025. All eight of the warmest months ever recorded by Copernicus have taken place since July 2023. Texas A&M University climate scientist Andrew Dessler pointed to long-term projections when assessing the data.

It is now time to stop acting surprised that our warming planet keeps getting warmer. This is occurring exactly as forecast by scientists literally decades ago.

Regional heat and drought

Western Europe registered its warmest summer on record, surpassing the previous high set in 2003. Consecutive heatwaves that began in May extended into August, producing severe drought across France, the United Kingdom, Hungary, Romania, and Serbia. Water levels dropped on key river systems including the Rhine, Danube, Southern Bug, and Dnieper. In the contiguous United States, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported an average August temperature of 75.6 degrees Fahrenheit, which is 3.5 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th-century norm. South Korea recorded 108.5 degrees Fahrenheit in Yangsan on August 2, the highest temperature recorded in the country. An analysis by Agence France-Presse based on Copernicus figures estimated that 1.3 billion people experienced their hottest summer on record between June and August. Copernicus climate lead Samantha Burgess described the physical disruption caused by the conditions.

Our climate system is really operating well outside the range we would have expected just a decade ago.

Ocean warming and El Niño

Global ocean surface temperatures away from polar regions tied the all-time monthly record set in March 2024, while August 22 registered the warmest single day ever measured in the world's seas. Marine heatwaves developed along Europe's Atlantic coast and across the western Mediterranean. In the tropical Pacific, a strengthening El Niño pattern released accumulated heat from the ocean into the atmosphere, contributing to wildfire conditions across Indonesia. Researchers expect the phenomenon to reach maximum intensity near the end of the year and into 2027. Imperial College London climate scientist Friederike Otto addressed the dual influence of fossil fuel emissions and the Pacific weather pattern.

While El Niño is starting to ramp up the heat, the underlying driver remains our relentless burning of fossil fuels. Climate change makes every El Niño hotter, and until we stop burning coal, oil and gas, these record-shattering months will simply keep on coming.

Economic impacts and policy responses

The prolonged high temperatures disrupted infrastructure across several continents, with reported road melting, rail track buckling, and hospital capacity strains. Agricultural sectors faced harvest losses that are expected to increase food prices in domestic and import markets. United Nations climate chief Simon Stiell addressed the broader economic toll of the season, linking the conditions directly to energy policy.

The evidence is irrefutable: this is the spiralling price of humanity's fossil fuel addiction, and the global climate crisis it is fuelling.

Stiell called on governments to accelerate the deployment of clean energy and reinforce forest and ocean conservation measures ahead of upcoming climate negotiations.