Europe is warming faster than anywhere else in the world, UN warns

Some scientists are calling Europe a "heatwave hotspot" as the number of extreme temperature events on the continent increases faster than in other regions. AFP - PHILIPPE HUGUEN

Temperatures in Europe have increased more than twice as much as the rest of the world over the past 30 years, according to a United Nations report. While many European countries have successfully been cutting emissions, the frequency and intensity of heat extremes on the continent are expected to keep increasing.

From 1991 to 2021, temperatures over Europe warmed at an average of 0.5 degrees Celsius per decade, while the global average was just 0.2 degrees Celsius, the report by the UN’s World Meteorological Organisation found.