January 27, 2025 – Spain’s Mediterranean coastal city of Valencia recorded its hottest January temperature of 26.9°C on January 27, breaking a record that goes back over 150 years, according to the national weather agency, Aemet.
This measurement surpasses the previous record of 26.6°C set on January 22, 2018, from a data set that began in 1869, Aemet shared in an X post.
A west wind contributed to the exceptionally high temperatures on the coast, with some areas experiencing their warmest night on record between January 26 and January 27, the eastern Valencia region’s weather association, Avamet, reported. Spain is at the forefront of the climate crisis, enduring longer, harsher, and more frequent heatwaves.
Scientists note that oceans have absorbed 90% of the excess heat generated by human activities since the start of the industrial age. A warmer Mediterranean Sea intensified the fierce October storm that led to Spain’s deadliest floods in decades, with the Valencia region accounting for nearly all of the 232 victims.