The highest temperature in European history appears to have hit Sicily on Wednesday, with early reports of 48.8C.
If this is accepted by the World Meteorological Organization, it will break the previous European record of 48C set in Athens in 1977.
It comes amid a fierce heatwave sweeping the Mediterranean.
Italy’s government has declared a state of emergency, as has the US state of Oregon, 6,000 miles away.
Oregon is bracing for 44C this weekend. Hundreds died when a heatwave setting a record 49.6C swept western Canada in June.
Records are broken from time to time but now they are being smashed, often, across continents.
Here we answer your climate-related questions.
What is going on with the weather?
Scientists have for decades warned that climate change will make extreme weather events, including heavy rain and deadly flooding, more likely.
Last month catastrophic outbreaks were experienced on five continents at the same time. A report by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change earlier this week said events once rare or unprecedented are becoming more common.
It said that will continue even if global heating is limited to 1.5C.
It also said that climate change is unequivocally being driven by human activity, which fuels these extreme weather patterns.
Is it likely to get even hotter?
Europe needs to prepare for temperatures of 50C in future, forecasters say.
Professor Peter Stott, of the Met Office, warned: “We can’t say exactly when it is likely to happen, but Europe will need to prepare for the eventuality... most likely close to the Mediterranean where the influence of hot air from North Africa is strongest.”
What about in the UK?
Meteorologists have warned our summers are likely to top 40C regularly, even if we manage to limit global warming to 1.5C.
The UK is already getting extreme weather, with 2020 the third warmest, fifth wettest and eighth sunniest year on record.
It’s the first year to fall into the top 10 for all three variables.
Data in The State Of The UK Climate 2020 revealed the average winter temperature for last year was 5.3C – which is 1.6C higher than the 1981 to 2010 average.
In early August 2020 there were highs of 34C on six consecutive days, with five “tropical nights” of at least 20C, making it one of the most significant heatwaves to affect southern England in 60 years. Mike Kendon, climate scientist at the Met Office and lead author of the report, said the figures indicated a new normal for the UK.
Why is 1.5C significant?
The projected harm to wildlife and ecosystems increases enormously between global heating of 1.5°C and anything higher.
At 2C, experts say there will be almost no coral reefs left, the Arctic will be ice-free in summer once a decade and huge numbers of animals and plants will be extinct.
The chance of flooding will increase by 170%.
But what about the rain?
Last year contained two of the three wettest UK days on record, from a data set of 47,000 days.
Global warming means the atmosphere holds more moisture, leading to more intense rainfall.
Moisture has already increased by 7% in the UK and would be 10% higher with 1.5C of warming.
After three people died in a derailment in Aberdeenshire following torrential rain last year, transport figures say the climate crisis threatens rail safety too.
