Rapid warming is reducing snow and ice cover in Europe - report

EUROPE is losing snow and ice cover as rapid warming hits its coldest regions, a major annual report has found.

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Around 100 scientists and experts contributed to the UN-backed European State of the Climate 2025, which found that at least 95% of the continent experienced above-average annual temperatures last year.

Europe saw dangerously high air temperatures, drought, heatwaves and record ocean temperatures as it warms more than twice as fast as the global average, according to the paper released by the UN World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF).

The annual sea surface temperature for the region was the highest on record in 2025 and wildfires burnt the largest area on record last year at around 1,034,550 hectares, producing the highest ever level of emissions, the paper said.