Europe heat wave 'virtually impossible' without human impact
Published 06/26/2026 Published June 26, 2026 European heat wave ‘virtually impossible’ without man-made climate change Europe's record-breaking heat wave would have been "virtually impossible" without
Published 06/26/2026 Published June 26, 2026 European heat wave ‘virtually impossible’ without man-made climate change Europe's record-breaking heat wave would have been "virtually impossible" without climate change, according to a rapid study published on Friday by the World Weather Attribution group. The researchers said the extreme temperatures are now up to 200 times more likely than just two decades ago.
Millions across France, Italy, Spain and the UK have faced temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit), with high nighttime heat preventing recovery. Researchers said a similar event in 1976 would have been around 3.5C cooler by day and significantly cooler at night. The study found that nearly half of the 850 cities analyzed across Europe have reached or are expected to reach record heat-stress levels, combining temperature and humidity.
How Europeans cope with the record-breaking heat wave To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video "Scientists like me are beginning to sound like a broken record," said Friederike Otto, professor of climate science at Imperial College London. "We put out similar quotes year after year, reacting to heat extremes that climb ever higher." "Yes, this is climate change, yes, it's us, no, it's not El Nino.
Yes, we have the solutions. No, we're not implementing them fast enough."
The BriefWire