May 2025: Record-Breaking Heat and European Drought Crisis

Published on: June 11, 2025, 7:47 a.m.

May2025rankedasthesecond-warmestMayonrecordglobally,bringingaveragetemperatures0.53°Cabovethe1991–2020norm-measuring15.79°C-andexceedingpre-industriallevelsby1.4°C. NorthwestEurope,includingtheUK,enduredanexceptionallydryspring,triggeringdroughtalarms. WithnorthernandcentralEurope,alongsidepartsofRussia,Türkiye,andothers,seeingfarbelow-averagerainfall,expertswarnofloomingwaterscarcity,at-riskharvests,andrecordseasurfacetemperaturesinthenortheastAtlantic. Thetrendhighlightstheintensifyingeffectsofclimatechangeandraisesseriousconcernsforagricultureandwatersecurity.