Europe experienced it second-warmest March on record after its third-coldest February (Copernicus)

"March 2026 was globally the fourth-warmest on record, at 1.48°C above pre-industrial levels", according to data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), implemented by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), published on 10/04/2026.

Additionally, "March had its second-warmest global sea surface temperature (SST) on record, reflecting a likely transition toward El Niño conditions", adds Copernicus.

In Europe, it was the "second-warmest March on record and much of the continent saw drier-than-average conditions. This comes after a colder-than-average and exceptionally wet February with widespread flooding, marking the third-coldest February for the continent in the last 14 years", data show.

In other parts of the world, "March was also marked by severe heat and dry conditions, including an unprecedented early heatwave and drier-than-average conditions in parts of the United States and Mexico." In February, Copernicus "recorded strong contrasts in warmer and cooler than average temperature anomalies across the Northern Hemisphere. In the Arctic, both the…