THE European climate agency reported today that this summer was Earth’s hottest on record.

The northern meteorological summer — June, July and August — averaged 16.8°C , according to Copernicus. 

That’s 0.03°C warmer than the old record in 2023. Copernicus records go back to 1940, but US, British and Japanese records, which start in the mid-19th century, show the last decade has been the hottest since regular measurements were taken and likely in about 120,000 years, according to some scientists.