The temperature of the ground in some areas of Spain has hit more than 60C during the deadly heatwave sweeping Europe, satellite recordings have shown.
It was so hot that a heat map that highlights scorching temperatures in red turned even darker – to black.
Temperature records have been broken on most of the continent, including France, Switzerland, Germany and Italy, where highs of 40C were recorded again on Wednesday.
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Sicily and Sardinia were forecast to be as high as 48C.
The heatwave claimed its first life this summer, prompting health warnings for tourists.
A 44-year-old worker was reportedly painting a zebra crossing in 40C heat in the town of Lodi outside Milan, Italy, at midday on Tuesday when he collapsed.
He was said to have lost consciousness due to the intense heat.
An area of high pressure, named Cerberus after the underworld monster from Dante’s Inferno, is making its way across the country.
On Tuesday, satellites recorded the land surface temperature in some areas of Extremadura in Spain at more than 60C.
A total of 13 autonomous communities were categorised as being at extreme risk (red alert), significant risk (orange alert), and risk (yellow alert), with some places recording 43C.
The 60C land temperature was recorded by the sea and land surface temperature radiometer (SLSTR) instrument, which is a feature of Copernicus Sentinel-3 satellites.
Copernicus is the Earth observation component of the European Union’s space programme.
Bosses at Copernicus point out that the land surface temperature is that of the soil and should not be confused with the air temperature.
The extreme heat is forecast to last across the Mediterranean for around two weeks.
The world experienced its hottest days on record in the first week of this month.
