
The record for the hottest day on Earth was broken three times last week in an extraordinary seven-day period for weather.
On Thursday July 6, the average temperature for the planet was recorded at 17.23C. The 2016 record of 16.92C occurred when the El Niño phenomenon led to worldwide weather quirks. But this was beaten, first on Monday, when 17.01C was reached, and then on Tuesday, when 17.18C was recorded, and again on Thursday.