Ireland has just experienced its hottest summer since temperature records began more than 120 years ago.

The average temperature across the country this summer was 16.19°C – slightly higher than the previous record set in 1995. This follows the warmest spring on record and puts 2024 on track to become the hottest year Ireland has ever seen, likely overtaking 2023.

Paul Moore, a climatologist with Met Éireann, said the trend is undeniable.

“The extra heat in the system and the continuous background warming are raising average and minimum temperatures. What used to be an ordinary season can now end up breaking records,” he explained.

Moore stressed that these changes are directly linked to climate change. Ireland’s climate has already warmed by over 1.1°C, and the new baseline makes record-breaking seasons far more common.

One of the striking changes is that nighttime temperatures are climbing faster than daytime ones, partly because of marine heatwaves. This increase raises the overall average.

For farmers, these changes create major uncertainty. Longer growing seasons sound positive in theory, but extremes at both ends are making life difficult.

“In some years, spring soils are so waterlogged that farmers can’t get onto their land,” Moore said. “Other years, it’s so dry that crops struggle to grow. Both situations bring real challenges.”

In short, Ireland is already living in a changed climate—one where record-breaking seasons may become the new normal. Photo by Bray Beach, County Wicklow, Ireland by Christine Matthews, Wikimedia commons.