Extreme heat continued to spread across Europe on June 24, 2026, prompting widespread red alerts and health warnings across Europe. The prolonged heatwave driven by a strong upper-level ridge is affecting much of Western, Central, and Southern Europe, with temperatures forecast to remain 3 to 10°C (5.4 to 18°F) above seasonal averages and locally exceed 40°C (104°F) through the end of June.
Major to Extreme HeatRisk conditions are forecast to develop across parts of the central United States this week as a strengthening heat dome expands over the region. National Weather Service offices have already issued Heat Advisories across portions of Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, and Texas, where heat index values are forecast to reach 40 to 42°C (104 to 108°F).
France recorded its hottest May day since records began on May 26, 2026, while temperatures climbed to 37.8 °C in southwestern parts of the country on May 28. Multiple stations across France set new all-time May temperature records this week as a prolonged heat dome pushed daytime temperatures into the upper 30s°C (upper 90s°F) and kept nighttime temperatures unusually high across much of the country.
Seven deaths were linked to exceptionally high temperatures in France after the country recorded its hottest May day since national observations began, with a national average temperature of 24.4°C (75.9°F) on May 25, 2026.
An intense early-season heatwave pushed temperatures to extreme levels across the southwestern United States between March 18 and 22, 2026, as a persistent high-pressure ridge produced widespread daily and monthly March temperature records. Record heat was reported across Arizona, California, Nevada, and other parts of the western United States.
A massive heat dome over the Mediterranean Sea is set to bring another long-lasting, intense heatwave across parts of southern Europe this week. High temperatures are expected to spread into central Europe and continue through August 22. Southern Italy, especially…
