Post Category → Europe

Today in Nice – 29 June 2026

The heatwave that has been baking Europe for the last week is creeping eastward, but it still hit 34C (93F) late this afternoon in Nice and 33C (91F) in Monaco. And the airconditioning on the crowded 18:06 train from Monaco between the two wasn’t working. One passenger measured the temperature at 42C (108F). I watched passengers whose breathing labored. It was stifling.

Continue reading →

World Weather Attribution report: Fossil fuel emissions have rapidly worsened European heatwaves in just a few decades

World Weather Attribution report: Fossil fuel emissions have rapidly worsened European heatwaves in just a few decades.

A study by World Weather Attribution released on Friday (26 June) shows that the heatwave that is currently baking much of Europe is the continent’s worst so far, in terms of heat stress and temperatures, and that the recipe of conditions that created it would have been virtually just 50 years ago. Brought to you by fossil fuels.

Some of the major findings:

  • Heatwaves cause more deaths in Europe than all other natural hazards combined
  • Vulnerability to heat has shifted over time, from primarily elderly people living alone to populations facing socioeconomic disadvantage and chronic illness, including homeless people and migrants, highlighting the need for adaptive, equity-focused heat-health policies.
  • In 1976, when some of the previous European records were set, the 2026 temperatures would have been virtually impossible to occur in June, while also highly unlikely at any time of the year. In 2003, the first major heatwave of this century, daytime heat like this would still have been very rare, about 10 times less likely than today, while nighttime temperatures such as this June would have been more than a hundred times less likely in 2003.
  • Across large parts of Western Europe, June is warming faster than any other month. In addition, daily maximum temperatures are warming faster than night time temperatures, though both are warming much faster than global warming. The hottest daily temperatures are warming at about triple the rate of global warming and night time temperatures at about twice the rate. Many capital cities are experiencing not only their hottest June 3-day period but also the hottest three-day period since 1950, according to the ERA5 dataset. However, due to global warming these temperatures are now no longer unusual during the summer months in many capitals.
  • This means that a similar heatwave in June would have been about 3.5°C cooler during the day in 1976 and about 2°C cooler in 2003. The nighttime temperatures would have been about 2.4°C cooler in June 1976 and about 1.3°C cooler in June 2003.
  • This June 2026 heatwave occurred under a circulation pattern broadly similar to historical analogues – Southerly Flow. However, a similar circulation pattern now produces significantly hotter temperatures than it did in the mid-20th century because the climate baseline has warmed.

And

  • This summer shows that at 1.4°C of global warming, extreme heat is already reaching the limits of our societies’ ability to cope. Our analysis here shows that intense heat is increasing rapidly even in living memory, with such events tens to hundreds of times more likely since only 2003 and virtually impossible just 50 years ago. A rapid phase-out of fossil fuels is critical if we are to avoid even higher temperatures and their consequences in the future.

[Report summary] [Full report]

Copernicus Image of the Day: Heatwave affecting Western Europe in the third decade of June 2026

Copernicus Image of the Day: Heatwave affecting Western Europe in the third decade of June 2026

Today’s Image of the Day from the European Union’s Earth Observation programme. That’s a lot of red.

From the image description:

A severe heatwave is currently affecting western Europe, France and Spain being the most affected countries. According to the French Meteorological Agency Météo France, Tuesday 23 June was reported the hottest day recorded since measurements began in 1947. In Spain, the State Meteorological Agency (AEMET) issued a red alert for above average temperatures in several areas in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, including Gipuzkoa, Bizkaia, and Cantabria cities.

This data visualisation, based on data from the Copernicus Sentinel-3 satellites acquired on 23 June 2026 at 09:54 UTC, shows the Land Surface Temperatures (LST) across central and southern France, and northern Spain. Extensive red and purple areas are visible, indicating peaks of the LST exceeding 50°C. It should be noted that LST values reflect ground surface temperature rather than air temperature. Although the two are broadly correlated, they can differ significantly.

Link.

Le Monde: France issues red heatwave alert on Sunday for third of country

Le Monde: France issues red heatwave alert on Sunday for third of country.

The red alert impacts 26 million people in 35 departments, more than a third of the country. Another 45 departments are on orange alert. From the report:

France issued a red heatwave alert across more than a third of the country for Sunday, June 21, as a ferocious heatwave dug in and the government banned the consumption of alcohol in public spaces in departments under this alert during the annual Fête de la Musique festivities.

The prolonged heatwave, which began earlier this week, has disrupted the country, forcing the cancellation of dozens of trains and the suspension of classes.

Link.

The Conversation: Climate change – how fires and floods are creating uninsurable areas across Europe

The Conversation: Climate change – how fires and floods are creating uninsurable areas across Europe.

There’s been lots of talk about the impacts of climate change on the insurance industry in the US, but I haven’t seen too much –besides some anecdotal evidence in the agriculture sector mostly — here in Europe. That is changing.

In Europe, concern over the protection gap – meaning the share of disaster losses that insurance does not cover – is rising. According to EIOPA, the EU’s insurance regulator, 75% of economic losses from natural catastrophes in Europe have historically gone uninsured.

In Germany, the national insurance association has warned that premiums could double within a decade due to climate-driven claims. In France, the national natural disaster scheme, known as CatNat, has been running at a deficit since 2016, prompting the government to raise the compulsory surcharge on all property insurance policies from 12% to 20% in January 2025.

In short, traditional insurance is ill-equipped to confront the reality of climate change. There are, however, alternative models that could provide coverage to people most at risk.

And concludes:

As these innovative solutions emerge, one thing is clear: uninsurable areas are no longer some distant future prospect. Weather-related damage has always happened, but the mechanisms we built to absorb climate risk were designed for a more stable climate. As that stability erodes, the question is no longer whether or not the public sector will need to play a larger role, but how quickly it can be redesigned to do so.

Link.

Solar panels were blamed for wiping out fields, but birds and insects are now rewriting the story beneath them

OKDiario: Solar panels were blamed for wiping out fields, but birds and insects are now rewriting the story beneath them

Done right, fields where solar panels are now being installed are coming back, healthier, and supporting numerous kinds of wildlife, birds included.

For years, the fear around solar farms has been easy to picture. Rows of dark panels, wide open fields, hot metal under the sun, and barely a bird in sight.

New data from Spain is now pushing back against that image. In several solar plants studied in 2025, researchers found more bird species inside the facilities than in nearby agricultural control areas, suggesting that well-managed solar farms can sometimes become unexpected refuges for wildlife rather than empty industrial spaces.

Link.

Le Monde: Heat dome over Europe scorches UK, France, Spain

Le Monde: Heat dome over Europe scorches UK, France, Spain.

All time record highs for the month of May bring in the first European heatwave of 2026. Among those was the UK where temps reached 34.8C, surpassing the previous all-time May peak of 32.8C, reached in 1922 and 1944. From the report:

Temperatures hit record highs for May in the United Kingdom and France on Monday, May 25, as forecasters warned of a prolonged period of extreme heat across Europe throughout the week. A so-called “heat dome” of warm air from northern Africa trapped under a high-pressure system over western Europe is behind the high temperatures not usually seen until high summer.

And

A so-called “heat dome” of warm air from northern Africa trapped under a high-pressure system over western Europe is behind the high temperatures not usually seen until high summer. Restrictions on outdoor work were imposed in parts of Italy, beaches in southwest France filled earlier than usual and farmers reported accelerated harvests as temperatures went beyond 30°C across the region. Scientists say human-driven climate change is amplifying such extremes, with Europe warming faster than the global average and heatwaves growing more frequent and severe.

Link.