Global temperatures soared this year, with May marking the second-hottest on record. Scientists have attributed an unprecedented Greenland heatwave during this period to the effects of climate change.
Last month was the second-warmest May globally, which was only surpassed by the corresponding month in 2024, the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said in a monthly bulletin.
Temperatures in May also rounded out the northern hemisphere’s second-hottest March-May spring on record, according to the bulletin.
Global May temperatures
In May, the average global surface air temperatures were 0.53 degrees Celsius above the 1991-2020 average for the period at 15.79 degree Celsius.
May 2025 was 1.40 degrees Celsius above the estimated 1850-1900 average used to define the pre-industrial level, the C3S bulletin noted.
The value is considerably lower than those in the range of 1.48-1.78 degree Celsius recorded from July 2023 to April 2025.
After an exceptional period of heat, where 21 out of the previous 22 months saw global average temperatures surpass 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, there was a temporary respite.
However, experts indicated that this break was probably short-lived.
C3S Director Carlo Buontempo was quoted in a Reuters report as saying:
Whilst this may offer a brief respite for the planet, we do expect the 1.5C threshold to be exceeded again in the near future due to the continued warming of the climate system.
Greenhouse gases accelerate warming
The release of greenhouse gases due to fossil fuel combustion was the primary reason behind climate change and global warming.
Notably, the previous year registered as the warmest year ever recorded globally.
A separate research from the World Weather Attribution group of climate scientists, released on Wednesday, indicated that anthropogenic climate change increased the record-setting heatwave in Iceland and Greenland last month by approximately 3 degrees Celsius.
This temperature rise led to substantial additional melting of Greenland’s ice sheet.
To avert the most severe impacts of climate change, nations committed under the Paris Agreement to strive to keep global warming below a 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold.
This 1.5 degrees Celsius limit represents the agreed-upon maximum increase in global temperature.
Global temperatures have not yet officially surpassed the 1.5 degrees Celsius target, which is calculated as an average over many years.
Some experts argue that achieving the target is no longer feasible, and they advocate for accelerated reductions in CO2 emissions to minimise the potential for exceeding it and exacerbating severe weather events.
The Climate Change Service (C3S) maintains records dating back to 1940, which are verified against worldwide temperature data extending to 1850.
European temperatures
Meanwhile, in Europe, the average temperature for May was 0.29 degrees Celsius below the 1991-2020 average for the period.
Surface temperatures were also cooler by 2.36 degrees Celsius than the warmest May in 2018.
The spring of 2025 (March to May) in Europe saw land temperatures 1.04 degrees Celsius higher than the 1991-2020 average, making it the fourth warmest on record.
The 2025 season was 0.46 degrees Celsius cooler than the record-breaking spring of May 2024, which reached 1.50 degrees Celsius above average.
Moreover, the 2025 spring was just marginally cooler, by 0.10 degrees Celsius and 0.04 degrees Celsius, respectively, than the second and third warmest springs, recorded in 2014 and 2007.
Additionally, the average temperature for Europe for the last 12 months till May was 1.33 degrees Celsius higher than the 1991-2020 average.
But, it was 0.34 degrees Celsius cooler than the highest 12-month average on record for Europe.
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