France, Oct. 2 -- Europe - the world's fastest-warming continent - endured a succession of heatwaves fuelled by climate change this summer. Beginning unusually early in the year, these extreme weather events broke temperature records and contributed to tens of thousands of excess deaths.

"One of the things that stands out for 2026 is that the heat was not only remarkable for its intensity, but also for its geographical extent," said Samantha Burgess, climate lead at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), which operates Copernicus.

This was Europe's third-warmest summer on record and the hottest ever recorded in western Europe, with several countries registering all-time temperature highs.

Four of Europe's 10 mo...