EARTH’S average temperature set a new unofficial record high on Thursday, the third such milestone in a week.

The planetary average hit 17.23°C, surpassing the 17.18°C mark set on Tuesday and equalled on Wednesday, according to data from the University of Maine's Climate Reanalyser.

That average includes places that are sweltering in dangerous heat such as Jingxing in China, which recorded 43.3°C.