Here’s Where Global Heat Records Stand So Far in July
As cities around the world have been experiencing record temperatures, average temperatures for the entire globe in July have been at their highest on record, too. Daily global surface air temperatures for every year since 1979 64 July 17, 2023 62 2022 60 1979-2021 58 56 54 52 50 Jan. 1 Mar. 1 May 1 July 1 Sep. 1 Nov. 1 Dec. 31 64 July 17, 2023 62 2022 60 1979-2021 58 56 54 52 50 May 1 Jan. 1 Sep. 1 Dec. 31 Source: Climate Reanalyzer, Climate Change Institute at the University of Maine, based on data from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction Climate Forecast System Global air temperatures reached a new high on July 3, surpassing the record set in 2016 and tied in 2022, according to multiple recent analyses, including from the University of Maine and the European Unions Copernicus Climate Change Service. Since then, global air temperatures have continued climbing, making July 6 the hottest day Earth has experienced since at least 1979 and very likely before that, experts said. Though global average temperatures dipped during the second week of July, they have remained above the highest temperatures ever recorded before this year. The first two weeks of July were very likely the warmest two-week period on record, according to the analysis by the Copernicus Climate Change Service. Last month was also the warmest June , according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The extreme heat and record temperatures are driven by the continued emissions of heat-trapping gases, mainly from the burning of fossil fuels, and in part by the return of El Nino, a cyclical weather pattern that tends to be associated with warmer years globally. Earth has warmed roughly 2 degrees Fahrenheit since the 19th century and will continue to grow hotter until humans essentially stop burning oil, gas and coal, and halt deforestation, scientists say. The warmer temperatures help make periods of extreme heat more frequent and more intense and exacerbate other extreme weather events like persistent drought, wildfires and torrential rain and flooding. Because these numbers represent worldwide averages, parts of the globe felt the exceptional bouts of heat more forcefully. A warmer-than-usual winter across parts of Antarctica contributed to the elevated global temperatures, experts at the University of Maine noted. And many parts of the world sweltered in summer heat, too. In the United States, the heat has been particularly brutal in the South and Southwest. On Tuesday, the highest recorded temperature in the United States was 122 degrees Fahrenheit at in California, according to the National Weather Service. Phoenix, for the first time since 1974, hit 19 consecutive days in which temperatures reached 110 degrees or more. Elsewhere, central and southern Italy and parts of Spain sweltered under temperatures that spiked well into the triple digits. At Persian Gulf International Airport on Irans southwestern coast, the heat index, which measures how hot it feels by taking into account temperature and humidity, reached a life-threatening 152 degrees Fahrenheit over the weekend, according to . is a reporter and graphics editor based in New York.