July 2023 on Pace to Become Hottest Month Ever Recorded, Researchers Say

After several sweltering weeks that saw persistent, dangerously high temperatures in the U.S. and around the world, July 2023 is officially on track to become the hottest month ever recorded. According to a new analysis by Leipzig University in Germany, this month is set to outstrip the former record-setting year, July 2019, by about half a degree Fahrenheit. The global mean temperature for July 2023—63 degrees, including winter in the Southern hemisphere—is two degrees above the normal average, Reuters reported. The UN World Meteorological Organization concurred, announcing on Thursday that July will almost certainly shatter global heat records. “Climate change is here,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. “It is terrifying, and it is just the beginning.”