MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Record high temperatures hit Greenland and Iceland, Copernicus Observatory warns

In addition, oceans showed in May the second warmest month in recent history

Greenland experienced a melting rate 17 times faster than average last month due to record-high temperatures, while Iceland saw temperatures exceed 26°C, the European Copernicus Observatory reported this week.

May 2025 was the second warmest May on record with a global average surface air temperature of 15.79°C, 0.53°C above the 1991-2020 average and 1.4°C above pre-industrial levels (1850-1900). This marked 21 of the last 22 months exceeding the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C threshold.

Global sea surface temperatures were also abnormally high, particularly in the Northeast Atlantic and Mediterranean, contributing to marine heatwaves.

These conditions threaten ecosystems, species migration, and nutrient distribution in oceans, while warmer waters increase the intensity of hurricanes and storms. Droughts affected regions like North America, Africa, Central Asia, southern Australia, and South America, with notable impacts in the UK, Denmark, and the Netherlands.

The Copernicus Climate Change Monitoring Service also noted that May saw hotter temperatures all over the planet, with many regions recording above-average figures, as has been the case for more than two years.

“The month of May 2025 breaks an unprecedented sequence of months with more than 1.5ºC above the pre-industrial level. Although this offers a brief respite for the planet, we expect the 1.5ºC limit to be exceeded again in the near future due to the continued warming of the climate system,” said Copernicus' Carlo Buontempo.

Oceans, meanwhile, showed the second warmest month in recent history, after the same period in the past. “Large areas of the northeastern North Atlantic have marine heatwaves, with record surface temperatures for the month. Most of the Mediterranean Sea was much warmer than average,” the Observatory also noted. “The oceans, which cover 70% of the Earth's surface, also act as an important regulator of the Earth's climate. Warmer waters give rise to more violent hurricanes and storms, with consequent destruction and flooding,” it further warned.