Second hottest July breaks 13-month record streak, EU scientists say

FILE PHOTO: A cyclist cools off at a fountain at Madrid Rio park during the second day of the heatwave, in Madrid, Spain, July 25, 2024. REUTERS/Ana Beltran/File Photo

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Last month was the second hottest July for the planet on record, breaking a 13-month period when each month was warmest, which had been in part fuelled by the warming El Nino weather pattern, the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service said on Thursday.

The month was 1.48 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above the pre-industrial reference of 1850-1990, Copernicus said in a monthly report, while the last 12 months were 1.64 C above the pre-industrial average due to climate change.