Spain: record of 61 days of heatwave during the summer of 2026

Spain recorded 61 days under heatwave conditions during the summer of 2026 in the peninsula and the Balearics, an absolute record since the beginning of the series from the National Meteorological Agency AEMET, the agency announced on Wednesday, September 9.

The summer season, which spans June, July, and August, was also the hottest observed in Spain since records began in 1961. The average temperature reached 24.5 °C, which is 0.3 °C higher than the previous record set in 2025 and 2.4 °C above the average for the period 1991-2020.

The number of days affected far exceeds previous highs. AEMET recorded 41 heatwave days in 2022 and 36 in 2025. In 2026, nearly two out of three days during the summer were marked by temperatures meeting the agency’s heatwave criteria. This record comes as the country was already facing a heavy human toll attributed to the heat in Spain at the beginning of September.

This persistence resulted in several particularly long episodes. The first wave lasted eight days, from June 20 to 27, and affected 42 provinces. A second wave, from July 2 to 24, involved 37 provinces and was the most intense of the summer, with an average thermal anomaly of 3.9 °C.

A third wave, between July 28 and August 20, affected 32 provinces. The episodes in July and August, lasting 23 and 24 days respectively, are among the longest recorded in Spain since at least 1975, surpassed only by the July 2015 wave that lasted 26 days.

The heat extended beyond the meteorological summer

AEMET emphasizes that summer temperatures exceeded the usual limits for the season. Typical July levels had already been observed in large areas of the country by the end of May.

Extreme heat also extended into September. A new heatwave was provisionally recorded from September 2 to 7, lasting six days, in 16 provinces. This is only the fifth heatwave recorded in September since the beginning of the series, following those of 1987, 1988, 2006, and 2016.

In the Canary Islands, another five-day episode affected both provinces of the archipelago from August 1 to 5. The Spanish agency further recalls that the ten hottest summers in its historical series all occurred in the 21st century, with seven of the eight hottest since 2015.

A record established according to strict criteria

To characterize a heatwave, AEMET requires that several criteria of duration, intensity, and extent be met. At least 10% of the stations considered must exceed the 95th percentile of the highest maximum temperatures for July and August over the reference period 1971-2000 for three consecutive days.

Reuters and AFP confirmed on Wednesday the main figures reported by AEMET, including the 61 heatwave days and the summer average of 24.5 °C. The 2026 season thus sets a new peak in a national meteorological series that spans more than six decades.