CNN —The climate crisis is taking an enormous toll on Europe, which was ravaged by extreme heat, drought, wildfires and glacier melt last year, a new analysis has concluded. The cracked ground of La Vinuela reservoir during a severe drought in La Vinuela, near Malaga, southern Spain August 8, 2022. Europe experienced the second-largest burned area on record in 2022, the report found, with Central Europe and the Mediterranean, in particular, seeing large areas scorched by fire. And oceans were unusually warm, with average sea surface temperatures in the North Atlantic the hottest on record. With the arrival of El Niño, a natural climate phenomenon with a global warming effect, many scientists are concerned 2023 could see even starker climate extremes.

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Persons: ”, Carlo Buontempo, Jon Nazca, El, Petteri Taalas Organizations: CNN, World Meteorological Organization, Central, North Atlantic, WMO Locations: Europe, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, France, La Vinuela, Malaga, Central Europe, North