Summer 2024 was hottest on record

The summer of 2024 was the hottest on record in Greece, according to the preliminary data from the Meteo weather service of the National Observatory of Athens.

The season was characterized by prolonged heat waves across the country, with temperatures far exceeding normal seasonal levels.

In addition, June and July 2024 were the warmest on record for Greece, while August was the second warmest after August 2021.

Summer temperatures this year were 2.9C higher on average than those in the same period from 1991 to 2020 and 1C warmer than 2012, which was the hottest on record before this.

On average, summer temperatures have increased by 2.3C since 1960.

Parts of western and northern Greece saw temperatures 2-3C (and above 4C in some places) above the 1991-2000 average, while in the rest of the country temperateres were 1-2C above average.