Europe heatwave made possible by climate change, scientists say

Europe's latest record-breaking heatwave would have been virtually impossible without human-caused climate change, according to a new rapid attribution study released by World Weather Attribution.

Researchers found that soaring temperatures gripping much of the continent are now around 200 times more likely than they were just two decades ago.

The study says a similar event occurring in the climate of 1976 would have been significantly cooler, highlighting how rapidly Europe's climate has changed.

The continent, already the world's fastest-warming, has seen temperatures exceed 40 degrees Celsius in several countries as a persistent heat dome fuels dangerous conditions.

The scientists warn that what was once considered an exceptionally rare event is becoming increasingly common.

Theodore Keeping, climate scientist at the Centre for Environmental Policy at Imperial College London:

"So we found that in the last 50 years since a previous heat wave affected Europe in 1976, that the chance of a heat wave like this has gone from almost impossible to something that we'd expect to see every couple of decades and as the climate continues to warm we will see events like this increasingly frequently and in a future climate this may be something that we expect to be commonplace."

The study also found that nearly half of the 850 European cities analysed have already experienced, or are expected to experience, record levels of heat stress, which combines high temperatures with humidity.

Scientists say the findings reinforce the growing impact of fossil fuel-driven climate change on extreme weather events across Europe.

Beyond cutting greenhouse gas emissions, researchers say governments must also prepare societies for a hotter future.

Theodore Keeping, climate scientist at the Centre for Environmental Policy at Imperial College London:

"There are two main things we can do about climate change. We can reduce our emissions and stop the problem at its source, and we can adapt to climate change, we know that climate change has happened, we know that it's continuing to happen very fast. We need to adapt our societies, our infrastructure, our behaviors to these new temperature extremes, we need to expect them to happen, they're only going to become more frequent in the near term."

Weather agencies across Europe have issued red heat alerts, while schools, transport services and outdoor events have been disrupted. Scientists say the latest findings underscore the urgency of both reducing emissions and adapting infrastructure to withstand more frequent and intense heatwaves in the years ahead.