The EU's climate monitor said Thursday that August was the hottest single month ever recorded globally, with ocean temperatures also reaching unprecedented highs as western Europe capped its warmest…

In response to the assessment by the Copernicus Climate Change Service, the UN warned that until humanity weaned off fossil fuels, the planet would only push deeper into uncharted territory.

Copernicus observations go back to 1940 but other evidence – such as ice cores, tree rings and coral skeletons – allow scientists to place today’s climate against a much longer historical context.