Spain has just experienced its hottest June days in over 70 years. The heatwave shattered 29 temperature records, with some highs unseen since 1920. Red alerts and tropical nights affected much of the country.
Spain has set new benchmarks for extreme heat, with June 22 and 23 officially recorded as the hottest June days since at least 1950. According to provisional data from the Agencia Estatal de Meteorología (Aemet), the average temperature anomaly across the peninsula reached +7.1°C above normal, underscoring the severity of this early summer heatwave. The spike in temperatures surpassed even the previous record set on June 30, 2025, highlighting the exceptional nature of this event.
The impact was not limited to daytime highs. Nighttime temperatures on both June 22 and 23 were the warmest ever observed in June, with the night from Monday to Tuesday ranking as the tenth hottest on record for any time of year. On June 23, the average maximum temperature was the third highest ever measured in June, only exceeded by the late June heatwave of the previous year.
During this episode, 29 new temperature records were set across 18 provinces, with three of these records standing unchallenged since 1920. The heatwave brought the first 45°C readings of 2026, with Andújar (Jaén) reaching 45.1°C on Monday and Montoro (Córdoba) matching it the following day. In total, 28 provinces saw temperatures of at least 40°C, and 129 out of 828 Aemet stations reported such highs on Tuesday alone. Nearly half of all observatories registered tropical, torrid, or even infernal nights, with minimums not dropping below 20°C, 25°C, or 30°C respectively.
Red alerts for extreme danger were issued in five provinces, with Guipúzcoa and Vizcaya enduring four consecutive days under this warning as forecasts predicted sustained highs of 40°C or more. The heatwave also set 13 new records for daytime maximums and 16 for highest minimum nighttime temperatures, affecting regions including A Coruña, Álava, Almería, Asturias, Baleares, Cantabria, Guipúzcoa, Jaén, León, Lugo, Madrid, Navarra, Ourense, Segovia, Teruel, Valladolid, Vizcaya, and Zamora.
Several meteorological milestones were reached, particularly in northern Spain. On June 23, Tama in Liébana (Cantabria) recorded 43.7°C, the highest temperature ever measured in the region for any month. At Bilbao airport, which has data dating back to 1947, the 40°C threshold was crossed twice already in 2026, matching the previous record for most such days in a single year. Historically, only seven days above 40°C were recorded in Bilbao between 1947 and 1999, compared to thirteen since 2000.
According to Aemet, Spain has experienced 78 heatwaves since 1975, totaling 458 days. The frequency and intensity of these events have increased sharply: from 129 heatwave days before 2000 to 329 between 2001 and 2025. The average number of heatwave days per year has risen from three in the late 1970s and early 1980s to 22 in the last decade. Each decade, the number of heatwave days grows by about 3.3, and the affected area expands by 3.2 provinces. The average intensity of heatwaves has also increased by 0.26°C every ten years.
For context, Spain's climate has become notably warmer in recent decades, with heatwaves now arriving earlier and lasting longer. The rise in both daytime and nighttime temperatures poses challenges for public health, infrastructure, and daily life, especially in regions unaccustomed to such extremes. These trends reflect broader patterns of warming observed across southern Europe, where record-breaking heat events are becoming increasingly common.
