Europe’s hottest year signals deepening climate crisis

The record-breaking heat in 2024 followed a year of exceptionally high global average temperatures in 2023. 2024 marked the first time that the global annual average temperature exceeded 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, with the five-year running average currently above 1.3°C. Europe continues to heat more rapidly than the global average, with temperatures during the past five years averaging around 2.4°C above pre-industrial levels.

Ocean temperatures mirrored the extremes on land, influenced in part by the lingering effects of El Niño, which peaked in late 2023. Many ocean basins recorded higher-than-average or record-breaking sea surface temperatures, with the Mediterranean experiencing its warmest year on record at 21.5°C average, 0.3°C above the previous record. Combined with extreme heat on land, globally these hotter ocean temperatures contributed to accelerated ice loss from glaciers and ice sheets, pushing global sea levels to their highest point in the modern record.

“Climate change indicators such as ocean heat and acidification, sea level rise, and sea ice loss are alarming and have major implications for every single continent – including Europe,” said Professor Celeste Saulo, Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization. “Every fraction of a degree matters – in terms of risks to our economies, disruptions to our societies, damage to our ecosystems, and threats to our children and grandchildren.”

Analysis by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) indicates that even keeping the global temperature rise to 1.5°C – the most ambitious target of the Paris Agreement – could result in 30,000 excess deaths per year from extreme heat. In a scenario in which the global temperature rise is 3°C, this number is predicted to be three times higher. The World Health Organization estimates that heat-related mortality has already increased more than 30% in the past two decades.

Southeast Europe is projected to face the highest and fastest-rising heat impacts anywhere on the continent. In 2024 the region experienced its longest and second-most severe heatwave on record, particularly affecting countries such as the Balkans, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, and Türkiye.