Arctic hit by record heat in 2025 as Europe’s ice retreats

Sub-Arctic Scandinavia endured its worst heatwave on record in 2025, while ice losses mounted from Greenland to Iceland.

Temperatures near and within the Arctic Circle exceeded 30°C during a three-week heatwave last July — the longest and most severe ever recorded in northern Scandinavia, according to the European State of the Climate 2025 report, released today by the World Meteorological Organization and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts.

The heat peaked at 34.9°C in Frosta, Norway, near the 64th parallel. At least 95% of the European continent experienced above-average temperatures for the year.

The consequences for ice were severe. The Greenland Ice Sheet lost an estimated 139 billion tonnes of ice, roughly 1.5 times the volume stored in all Alpine glaciers. Iceland recorded its second-largest glacier loss on record and European snow cover in March was 31% below average — the third-lowest extent since 1983.

Ocean warming compounded the picture with European sea surface temperature the highest on record for the fourth consecutive year and severe marine heatwave conditions reached the Norwegian Sea at the same time land temperatures were spiking across Fennoscandia.

“The WMO State of the Climate has revealed the imbalance of energy on our planet, and the European State of the Climate reflects the impacts for Europe,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo. ECMWF Director-General Florian Pappenberger called it proof that climate change “is our present reality.”