Last month was the second warmest May on record, according to latest research released today (Wednesday, June 10).

According to the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) there was an "intense heatwave in western Europe" last month.

May also saw an average surface air temperature of 15.81°C.

This was 0.55°C above the 1991-2020 average for the month, only behind May 2024. 

Copernicus reports that across Europe, the month was marked by a rapid transition from much cooler-than-average conditions to one of the most intense heatwaves ever observed this early in the year in western Europe.

During the second half of the month, western Europe experienced an unusually early and intense heatwave, with many May temperature records broken across Ireland, France, the UK and Portugal.

“Feels-like” temperatures reached 35°C to 40°C across large parts of the region, corresponding to ‘strong’ (above 32°C) and ‘very strong’ (above 38°C) heat stress conditions.

According to Copernicus: “The rapid transition likely increased impacts on populations, leaving little time for people– or crops and ecosystems during growing season – to acclimatise to much higher temperatures.”

For Europe, this was also the third warmest spring (March–May) on record.

‘Exceptional global warmth’

Last month also saw a contrast in dry and wet conditions.

In large parts of western, central and eastern Europe – including Italy and Spain – there was drier-than-average conditions. Conversely, there was widespread flooding in Turkey, Bulgaria and Moldova, as parts of northwest continental Europe, north Scandinavia, Finland, Turkey and the Black Sea region were wetter than average.

Samantha Burgess, strategic lead for climate at the European Centre for Medium–Range Weather Forecasts, said: “May 2026 was the second warmest May on record globally, extending the exceptional global warmth, with near-record temperatures in both the atmosphere and the ocean.

“In Europe, an unusually early and intense heatwave demonstrates how quickly climate extremes are becoming the new normal rather than the exception.”

Irish spring temperatures

Last week (June 4) Met Éireann reported that spring 2026 in Ireland was “exceptionally warm”, making it the third warmest spring on record.

The national mean spring 2026 temperature across March, April and May was 10.14°C, the latest seasonal climate report from the national forecaster showed.

This was 1.02°C above the 1991-2020 long-term average (LTA) and 1.77°C above the 1961-1990 LTA.