Climate Hottest Year

FILE - A baseball fan cools off before a game between the San Diego Padres and the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, July 1, 2026.

Tags

As featured on

This summer isn't breaking heat records -- yet. Wait until El Nino kicks in, scientists say

This summer isn't breaking heat records -- yet. Wait until El Nino kicks in, scientists say

With parts of the globe aflame in wildfires, deadly heat waves parking over cities, record hot oceans and a strengthening super El Nino, it seems like we’re baking through the hottest year on record. But we’re not quite there — yet. It's only No. 3 in the record books. But it could be No. 1 soon. With the El Nino kicking in and accelerated warming, scientists say there’s increasing likelihood that the second half of 2026 will be near record territory. Scientists say this summer's warming is from human-caused climate change, not El Nino.