August was joint hottest month on record, says European climate agency

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Tourists in Rome braved the heat of August, which has tied for the world's warmest month on record, according to Copernicus

Environment correspondent Published 9 minutes ago August was the joint-hottest month ever recorded, tying with July 2023, according to the EU's climate service.

The record was driven by a combination of climate change and the rising influence of El Niño, pushing heat into the atmosphere across the Pacific.

Temperatures for the month were 1.65C above pre-industrial levels - surpassing the critical 1.5C threshold agreed by countries to avoid the worst consequences of climate change.

While a single month above 1.5C does not mean it has been permanently crossed, it shows a trend towards breaching that limit.

The month also capped western Europe's warmest summer, with high temperatures pushing the season past the deadly heat of 2003.