Scientists say the severe heatwave sweeping across western Europe has been made significantly more intense by climate change driven by fossil fuel burning, warning that such conditions would have been far less likely in the past.
Across much of the region, temperatures are rising well above seasonal norms, with high humidity adding to the strain.
The combination is pushing heat stress to dangerous levels and placing pressure on hospitals, transport systems and public services.
Several countries, including France, Spain and the United Kingdom (UK), have reported disruptions including travel delays, school closures and a rise in heat-related medical emergencies.
Health officials have warned that prolonged exposure to these temperatures raises the risk of dehydration, heat exhaustion and other serious health complications, particularly for older people and those with existing health conditions.
The findings come from an analysis by the World Weather Attribution (WWA), which studies the role of climate change in extreme weather events. Researchers compared current conditions with past climate patterns to understand how much global warming has influenced the severity of the heatwave.
They found that a similar heat event would have been significantly cooler in previous decades, including about 2 °C lower in 2003 and even milder in the 1970s. The analysis also found that very warm nights, which prevent the body from recovering from daytime heat, are now much more frequent than in the past.
“We found that in the last 50 years, during which time the planet has warmed by 1.1 °C, the chance of a heatwave like this has changed immensely. This event would not have been possible in June without human-caused climate change,” said Dr Theodore Keeping, a WWA researcher.
He added that the speed at which extreme heat is increasing is “startling,” warning that events like this may become more common in the future.
According to the researchers, natural climate fluctuations, including El Niño, are not responsible for the severity of the current heatwave. The conditions are being driven by a persistent high-pressure system over Europe, intensified by long-term global warming.
“Climate change is running rampant, caused by the world’s addiction to burning coal, oil and gas,” UN climate chief Simon Stiell said on the findings.
Stiell subsequently called for a faster shift to clean energy and stronger climate adaptation measures as extreme heat becomes more frequent.
“The solutions are equally clear: a faster shift to clean energy – which is now much cheaper than fossil fuels – as well as protecting forests and building climate resilience.”
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