According to a new analysis released by the Copernicus Climate Change Service, oceans globally recorded their hottest July ever last month. Outside the polar regions, the ocean surface averaged 69.73 degrees F (20.96 degrees C), breaking the previous July record set in 2023. The severe ocean heat was particularly pronounced in the Pacific due to an intensifying El Niño, while land surface temperatures also soared, making last month the second hottest July on record globally across both land and sea.
Europe Faces Relentless Summer Heatwaves
The unprecedented marine heat heavily impacted Europe, which continues to cope with a scorching summer. Samantha Burgess, deputy director of Copernicus, noted that July 2026 marked the third consecutive month of exceptional heat in Western Europe, pushing the combined temperature for June and July to a historic regional record. Recurrent hot spells and meager rainfall have severely desiccated regional soils. As soils dry out, they lose their natural cooling capacity, creating a feedback loop where heat and drought increasingly reinforce one another.
Historic Drought Reveals World War II Relics
The compounding impacts of intense heat and prolonged drought have dramatically drained rivers across Europe, most notably the Danube River. Low water levels along the border between Serbia and Romania have exposed dozens of World War II shipwrecks belonging to a Nazi fleet that was intentionally sunk near the end of the war to hinder the advance of Soviet forces. Furthermore, local authorities in Slovakia successfully recovered an unexploded World War II bomb from the receding waters of the Danube.
