Tuesday 8 September 2026 08:09
Summer 2026 was Italy's hottest since 1950
National research council says average temperature of 24.3°C beats previous record set in 2003, with August alone posting the largest anomaly on record.Summer 2026 has officially gone down as the hottest in Italy since records began in 1950, according to the country's National Research Council (CNR).
The findings come from the CNR's Institute for Bioeconomy (CNR-Ibe), which analysed temperature data recorded across the country since 1950 using the Era5 Land dataset compiled by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF).The analysis found that the average temperature across Italy this summer, measured two metres above ground level, reached 24.3°C – overtaking the previous record of 23.6°C set in the summer of 2003.August proved the standout month, with a national average temperature of 25.6°C – some 5.2°C above the average August temperature of 20.4°C recorded between 1951 and 1980, and 3.5°C above the 1991-2020 August average of 22.1°C.CNR-Ibe researcher Lorenzo Arcidiaco said the August 2026 average surpassed the previous records of 24.6°C set in 2024 and 24°C reached in August 2017."The data suggest that 2026 could end up as the hottest year since 1950," Arcidiaco said, adding that heat maps ranking monthly average temperatures since 1950 showed, for the first time, that July and August had consecutively posted the hottest readings on record for their respective months.The researcher noted that spring 2026 had already reached a record seasonal average of 12.1°C, matching the figure recorded in 2024 – until now the hottest year on record.The CNR said that between January and August, around 70 per cent of Italian territory recorded temperature anomalies of more than one degree above average, while roughly 40 per cent saw anomalies exceeding two degrees.Separately, the Marmolada glacier in the Dolomites, the largest in the Apennines, suffered record ice loss over the summer, underlining the impact of the extreme heat on Italy's Alpine glaciers.
Photo credit: Stefano Guidi / Shutterstock.com
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Summer 2026 has officially gone down as the hottest in Italy since records began in 1950, according to the country's National Research Council (CNR).
The findings come from the CNR's Institute for Bioeconomy (CNR-Ibe), which analysed temperature data recorded across the country since 1950 using the Era5 Land dataset compiled by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF).
The analysis found that the average temperature across Italy this summer, measured two metres above ground level, reached 24.3°C – overtaking the previous record of 23.6°C set in the summer of 2003.
August proved the standout month, with a national average temperature of 25.6°C – some 5.2°C above the average August temperature of 20.4°C recorded between 1951 and 1980, and 3.5°C above the 1991-2020 August average of 22.1°C.
CNR-Ibe researcher Lorenzo Arcidiaco said the August 2026 average surpassed the previous records of 24.6°C set in 2024 and 24°C reached in August 2017.
"The data suggest that 2026 could end up as the hottest year since 1950," Arcidiaco said, adding that heat maps ranking monthly average temperatures since 1950 showed, for the first time, that July and August had consecutively posted the hottest readings on record for their respective months.
The researcher noted that spring 2026 had already reached a record seasonal average of 12.1°C, matching the figure recorded in 2024 – until now the hottest year on record.
The CNR said that between January and August, around 70 per cent of Italian territory recorded temperature anomalies of more than one degree above average, while roughly 40 per cent saw anomalies exceeding two degrees.
Separately, the Marmolada glacier in the Dolomites, the largest in the Apennines, suffered record ice loss over the summer, underlining the impact of the extreme heat on Italy's Alpine glaciers.
The analysis found that the average temperature across Italy this summer, measured two metres above ground level, reached 24.3°C – overtaking the previous record of 23.6°C set in the summer of 2003.
August proved the standout month, with a national average temperature of 25.6°C – some 5.2°C above the average August temperature of 20.4°C recorded between 1951 and 1980, and 3.5°C above the 1991-2020 August average of 22.1°C.
CNR-Ibe researcher Lorenzo Arcidiaco said the August 2026 average surpassed the previous records of 24.6°C set in 2024 and 24°C reached in August 2017.
"The data suggest that 2026 could end up as the hottest year since 1950," Arcidiaco said, adding that heat maps ranking monthly average temperatures since 1950 showed, for the first time, that July and August had consecutively posted the hottest readings on record for their respective months.
The researcher noted that spring 2026 had already reached a record seasonal average of 12.1°C, matching the figure recorded in 2024 – until now the hottest year on record.
The CNR said that between January and August, around 70 per cent of Italian territory recorded temperature anomalies of more than one degree above average, while roughly 40 per cent saw anomalies exceeding two degrees.
Separately, the Marmolada glacier in the Dolomites, the largest in the Apennines, suffered record ice loss over the summer, underlining the impact of the extreme heat on Italy's Alpine glaciers.
Photo credit: Stefano Guidi / Shutterstock.com
