This week, Copernicus Climate Change Service, the European Earth Observation Agency, in collaboration with the World Meteorological Organization, published its annual report on the state of the climate in Europe.
Europe continues to warm faster than any other continent, at a rate twice as high as the world average. Temperatures above normal were recorded on at least 95% of the continent in 2025.
These extreme temperatures also affect European glaciers and ice sheets. Glacier mass losses were particularly significant in Iceland, Svalbard and the outskirts of Greenland, according to the report.
The ice cap that covers most of Greenland lost about 139 billion tons of ice between August 2024 and August 2025, about one and a half times the total volume of ice contained in all glaciers in the European Alps.
This cap contains enough fresh water to raise the sea level by more than 7 meters. The melting recorded last year has already contributed to an average rise in global ocean levels of 0.4 mm.
Hot and dry conditions have also led to a record activity of forest fires in Europe. More than one million hectares burned — an area greater than that of Cyprus — while fire-related emissions reached their highest level ever recorded. Spain was the most affected country, accounting for about half of the emissions alone.
The European oceans have also suffered this strong heat: 2025 marks the fourth consecutive year of record marine temperatures, with marine heat waves affecting 86% of European oceanic areas.
This long-term trend has negative consequences for biodiversity, species and marine habitats. Marine heat waves can also coincide with terrestrial heat waves, contributing to more extreme temperatures and humidity, including at night, which slows the body’s recovery from thermal stress and disrupts sleep, the report points out.
According to scientists, this trend should not reverse this year. The effects of human-made climate change could even be amplified in the short term by the Pacific cyclical climate phenomenon known as El Niño, which influences weather conditions worldwide.
Seasonal forecasts compiled by Copernicus suggest that an El Niño episode could develop from the end of next month. However, scientists refuse for the moment to describe this phenomenon as « super El Niño ».
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Each 1 cm rise in sea level could expose about 6 million more people to the risk of coastal flooding around the world.
Edited by Emiliya Mychasuk, FT climate editor
