Scientists say August was Earth's hottest month they've measured

The European climate service Copernicus said the Earth just sweltered through its hottest month on record in August. Scientists said the heat surge is mostly due to human-caused climate change.

<img src='https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6860x4573+0+0/resize/6860x4573!/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F04%2F61%2F967ca38f44d0bdc69106f4e2b78b%2Fap26252657054996.jpg' alt='Visitors pass by the cooling fog device at Gwangmyeong Cave tourist site in Gwangmyeong, South Korea, Aug. 6, 2026.'/><p>The European climate service Copernicus said the Earth just sweltered through its hottest month on record in August. Scientists said the heat surge is mostly due to human-caused climate change.</p><p>(Image credit: Ahn Young-joon)</p><img src='https://media.npr.org/include/images/tracking/npr-rss-pixel.png?story=nx-s1-5964676' />