Europe's scorched landscapes seen from space after summer heatwaves

Satellite images examined by BBC Verify reveal the widespread impact of this summer's extreme heatwaves and drought on western Europe. Since May, successive heatwaves have caused visible changes to the landscape, including shrunken glaciers, areas scorched by wildfires, arid fields, and significantly lower river levels. The EU's Copernicus climate monitoring service confirmed that the June-to-July period was the hottest on record for western Europe. While persistent high-pressure systems were the immediate cause of the heatwaves, climate change, largely driven by fossil fuel burning, has increased the likelihood and intensity of such hot spells over decades.

Record heatwaves are fueling widespread wildfires across Europe, which have already burned approximately 500,000 hectares of land. These fires have necessitated the evacuation of thousands of people. The extreme temperatures are the primary driver of these devastating blazes.