September 2026 was the world's second-hottest September on record, Copernicus says
Global temperatures stayed above the 1.5-degree threshold for a second straight month, and the agency's director expects the streak to last into 2027 as El Niño strengthens.
September 2026 was the second-warmest September on record globally, the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) reported.
The average global surface air temperature reached 16.27 degrees Celsius (61.29 degrees Fahrenheit), 0.82 degrees above the 1991-2020 average and 1.63 degrees above preindustrial levels. It was the second consecutive month this year that global temperatures exceeded the critical 1.5-degree threshold.
Carlo Buontempo, director of C3S, said a new run of temperatures above the 1.5-degree mark has begun and will likely last into 2027 because of strong El Niño conditions that are still intensifying.
Europe had its third-warmest September, with land temperatures averaging 16.26 C, 1.54 degrees above the 1991-2020 norm. Western Europe tied 2023 for its hottest September on record at 2.51 degrees above normal. Drought deepened across the Iberian Peninsula, France, Italy, the Western Balkans and Greece, and the Rhine, Danube, Vistula and Garonne-Dordogne rivers fell to record-low September flows.
Sea surface temperatures between 60 degrees south and 60 degrees north averaged 21.05 C, the highest ever recorded for the month. Antarctic sea ice reached its third-lowest winter maximum in the satellite record, about 6% below the September average, while Arctic sea ice hit its 14th-lowest annual minimum.
This brief is based on reporting by the İklim Haber newsroom, published Oct. 13, 2026, drawing on data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service. Read the original: https://www.iklimhaber.org/eylul-2026-kayitlara-gecen-en-sicak-ikinci-eylul-oldu/
This article was produced with the assistance of AI tools and reviewed by an editor before publication.
