August 2026 Hottest Month on Record Globally

August 2026 was the hottest month ever recorded globally, effectively tying July 2023 with a global average air temperature of 16.96 degrees Celsius, according to data released by the European climate observatory Copernicus. This temperature exceeded the 1.5 degrees Celsius limit above pre-industrial levels set by the Paris Agreement, marking the first month since November 2025 to surpass this threshold. The global average temperature for August 2026 was 1.65 degrees Celsius higher than the 1850-1900 reference period. Ocean temperatures also reached unprecedented highs, with extrapolar oceans recording an average of 21.07 degrees Celsius, the highest ever for August and surpassing the previous record set in 2023. Samantha Burgess, Strategic Lead for Climate at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, stated that these observations demonstrate how climate change is driving extremes across both the atmosphere and oceans, with impacts increasingly felt by communities, economies, and ecosystems worldwide. For Western Europe, August marked the end of the hottest summer on record, surpassing the previous record from 2003.