While July 2021 was marked by devastating floods across Europe, this summer the continent is enduring a record-breaking heatwave. Many European regions have reached all-time high temperatures, resulting in the spread of wildfires. This includes the UK, where temperatures reached 40.2°C for the first time in history. To make sense of it all, we spoke to Len Shaffrey, professor of climate science at the University of Reading, who talked us through the heatwave’s timeline and explained why Europe has been warming faster than most of the world.