The UK is no stranger to a heatwave. In fact, the phenomenon of UK summers being a 'different kind of heat' is widely joked about, as British homes and offices built for retaining warmth in winter struggle to offer a respite to climbing temperatures. 

Yet despite the gag, reaching mid-thirties in May is far from a joke. On Monday 25 May 2026, the UK's Met Office announced 12 locations to have broken temperature records, with London's Kew Garden's reaching 34.8°C, surpassing the previous May records set in 1922 and 1944 by two degrees. The following day, records were shattered once again, with mid-morning temperatures climbing into the thirties and eventually reaching 35.1°C. For anyone commuting on the London Underground, those temperatures will probably come as no surprise.

And it's not just the UK: in France, 37.1°C was recorded near Hossegor in the country's southwest, and seven deaths linked to the heatwave were reported by government sources. Spain, Italy and Portugal were in similar positions, with the mercury climbing to 40°C in some parts. 

So what exactly is behind this super-heated spell, and how bad could it be for the general population?

The ‘heat dome’ effect

The rapid rise in temperatures is explained by the 'heat dome' phenomenon, where hot air is essentially trapped in a vicious, superheated cycle. 

It all starts when a period of warm, still weather allows air to gradually heat up and rise. As this air moves into the upper atmosphere, it begins to get squashed, forming a stretch of compressed, high-pressure air way above the Earth's surface.

This stretch of air then essentially acts as a lid, preventing any warmer air in the lower atmosphere from rising and escaping. Instead of warm air moving out into the wider circulation, it is trapped and forced back down towards the Earth's surface. 

To exacerbate the situation, as this warmer air is forced back down, it is heated up even more. So, the air we are left with at the surface is super-heated, and unable to escape the dome formed by the initial stretch of high-pressure air. 

In this case, the heat dome travelled from northern Africa to settle over central and western Europe, resulting in these temperature extremes.

How is Europe coping?

While for many the hot weather has come at the perfect time – over a long bank holiday weekend in the UK combined with the school half-term holiday – the effects of such extreme temperatures have had severe, and in some cases fatal, consequences.

In the UK, amber health alerts have been issued across the island's central and south regions, indicating a possible risk to human life. In separate incidents, three teenage deaths were reported on Monday, after the victims got into trouble swimming. 

In France, seven deaths including two from sports-related incidents, were reported by national papers. In Italy’s central Lazio region, which includes Rome, authorities have imposed restrictions on work in conditions "with prolonged exposure in the sun" – such as on farms, construction sites and in the delivery sector – between the hours of 12.30pm and 4pm.

Climate change in action

As the frequency and severity of heatwaves rises across the globe, experts have been quick to point out the link with climate change. Rising global temperatures and warming oceans affects wind and weather patterns, making extreme temperatures and erratic weather shifts the new norm. 

In the UK, heat-related deaths could triple to around 7,000 per year by 2050, according to a 2018 government report. The latest UK Met Office State of the UK Climate report revealed the UK is warming at approximately 0.25°C per decade, with the past three years ranking among the five warmest on record.

Zooming out, a European-wide report issued last year warned that the continent could see an extra 55,000 temperature-driven deaths each year unless mitigation measures are put in place. The report also noted a regional disparity, with heat-related deaths being over six times more common in southern Europe than in the north.

Moreover, these weather patterns are far from exclusive to Europe; the Indian subcontinent has been battling its own heat dome over the past few weeks, with temperatures nearing 50°C, and 37 deaths attributed to the sweltering heat.

Keep your cool

While it may feel hard to escape the heat, here are some tips and tricks that may help you to keep your cool. 

If you leave your home for the day, make sure to shut any blinds and curtains, especially in rooms that enjoy direct sunlight. This will prevent the sun's rays from heating up the room over the course of the day, maintaining a more bearable temperature. 

Make sure to shut those windows too, as that will only bring the hot outside air in. To get some airflow, open the windows in the early morning or evening, when the outside temperature is cooler than inside your home.

A cold shower before bed is a great way to quickly cool down - failing that, a damp flannel or ice applied to your pulse points such as your wrists will bring down the temperature of your blood, before circulating through your body.

In countries where hot weather is the norm, hot drinks and spicy food are regularly consumed. While this may seem counterintuitive, the heat and spice help you to sweat, cooling your body down naturally. If this doesn't seem up your street however, a trip to the local ice cream van may be in order!

For any pet owners out there, now isn't the time to take them on a long hike or car ride. Dogs are especially sensitive to overheating, and will pant excessively to try and cool themselves down. Make sure to add some ice to their water bowls, and keep them inside in a shaded room. Take them out for walks in the early morning or late evening, when the ground isn't too hot for their paws.