Europe, the fastest continent is a warming – a record temperature rise in 2024

The annual report, which is based on contributions of about a hundred scientists, highlights widespread climatic effects across the continent, including unprecedented heat waves, severe floods, melting of ice escapes, and increased human stress.

Storms and floods claimed the lives of at least 335 people in Europe, and affected nearly 413,000 people in 2024. A third of the European rivers network exceeded the “high” flood threshold, which formed the widest floods since 2013.

The report documents a blatant climate division, as Eastern Europe has witnessed record dryness and heat, while Western Europe has witnessed one of the ten most humid years since 1950.

Southeast Europe witnessed the longest free wave ever registered in July, which lasted 13 days and affected 55% of the region. The intensity of heat stress also continued, as in 2024, the second highest number of “strong” and “very strong” and “strong” heat strains was ever.

The Mediterranean surface temperature reached 1.2 ° C above average, which is the highest temperature ever.

According to the report, the ice rivers in Europe witnessed a significant decrease. The ice rivers in the Scandinavian countries and Saflad registered their highest losses ever, as their level in Svalbard decreased by 2.7 meters.

Cilest Solo, Secretary -General of the World Meteorological Organization, said: “Every additional part of the high temperature is important because it exacerbates the risks of our lives, economies and our planet. Adaptation is a must. Therefore, the World Meteorological Organization and its partners intensify their efforts to enhance early warning systems and climate services to help decision -makers and society as a whole to be more flexible. We make progress, but we need to move forward and more quickly, and we must walk together”.

Despite the challenges, the report refers to positive steps in the field of renewable energy and adaptation to the climate. Renewable energy accounted for 45% of the generation of electricity in Europe in 2024, which is a new record. In addition, 51% of European cities now have plans for adaptation to climate change, a significant increase compared to 26% in 2018.

The report includes a comprehensive overview based on data on climatic conditions for this year, and it includes more than 130 visual resources, and highlights events such as Boris storm that caused fatal floods in the center and eastern Europe, and heavy rains in the Spanish region of Valencia.

With global temperatures and confronting Europe for increasing climatic threats, the report emphasized the urgent need for a flexible infrastructure, early warning systems, and to take enlightened decisions on all levels of society.