- July was the second hottest month on record – slightly behind July 2023’s record
- In July, the Earth recorded its two hottest days on record
- 2024 is on target to be the hottest year on record
July 2024 was the second-warmest month globally and the Earth experienced its hottest days on record, according to new figures.
Record temperature
Data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service found that in July the Earth had an average surface air temperature of 16.91°C. This was 0.68°C above the 1991-2020 average for July, and only 0.04°C lower than the previous high set in July 2023.
This marked the end of a 13-month period when each month was the warmest in the data record for the respective month of the year.
Although July 2024 was not quite as warm as July 2023, the Earth experienced its two hottest days on record. The daily global-average temperature reached 17.16°C and 17.15°C on 22 and 23 July. Although given the small margins Copernicus noted that it could not say which of the two days was the hottest with complete certainty.
According to the data, July was 1.48°C above the estimated July average for 1850-1900, the designated pre-industrial reference period, marking the end of a series of 12 consecutive months at or above 1.5°C.
However, the global-average temperature for the past 12 months (August 2023 – July 2024) is 0.76°C above the 1991-2020 average and 1.64°C above the 1850-1900 pre-industrial average.
The year-to-date global temperature is 0.70°C above the 1991-2020 average and 0.27°C warmer than the same period in 2023. Copernicus warns that as the average temperature for the remaining months of this year would need to drop by at least 0.23°C for 2024 not to be warmer than 2023, it is increasingly likely that 2024 is going to be the warmest year on record.
Above average around the world
The average European temperature for July was 1.49°C above the 1991-2020 average for July. This made the month the second warmest July on record for Europe after July 2010.
European temperatures were most above average over southern and eastern Europe, but near or below average over northwestern Europe.
Outside Europe, temperatures were most above average over the western United States and western Canada, most of Africa, the Middle East and Asia and eastern Antarctica.
Temperatures were below average over western Antarctica and parts of the United States, South America, and Australia.
“The streak of record-breaking months has come to an end, but only by a whisker,” said Samantha Burgess, deputy director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service. “Globally, July 2024 was almost as warm as July 2023, the hottest month on record. The overall context hasn’t changed, our climate continues to warm. The devastating effects of climate change started well before 2023 and will continue until global greenhouse gas emissions reach net-zero.”
