{"id":61834,"date":"2026-06-30T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/?guid=246dd3d53f1a4b929fa0d5fc04581cc7"},"modified":"2026-06-30T14:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T14:00:00","slug":"europes-deadly-heat-wave-seen-from-space-space-photo-of-the-day-for-june-30-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/2026\/06\/30\/europes-deadly-heat-wave-seen-from-space-space-photo-of-the-day-for-june-30-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe’s deadly heat wave seen from space | Space photo of the day for June 30, 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n \n
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Land surface temperature data captured by Europe's Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission on Wednesday, June 23, 2026. The data were captured in the late morning, local time. <\/span>(Image credit: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2026), processed by ESA)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>

Over 1,300 deaths have been attributed to a heat wave that swept across Europe and broke temperature records earlier this month.<\/p>

From its perch in sun-synchronous low Earth orbit<\/u><\/a>, Europe's Sentinel-3<\/u><\/a> satellite captured data that helps visualize the heat wave and aids researchers in understanding both the causes and effects of the atmospheric phenomena that led to these soaring temperatures.<\/p>

What is it?<\/h2>

In this image from the European Space Agency<\/u><\/a> (ESA), land surface temperatures are depicted on a scale that depicts hotter temperatures as red and violet. On the date this image was taken, June 23, France recorded its hottest June day ever, according to ESA<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>

The Sentinel-3 satellite detected surface temperatures as high as 131 degrees Fahrenheit (55 degrees Celsius) in parts of central Spain, western France and northern Africa, while Madrid saw 118 degrees F (48 degrees C), and surface temperatures in Rome reached 111 degrees F (44 degrees C).<\/p>

Why is it incredible?<\/h2>

Temperatures this high were unprecedented across of much of Europe. Authorities with the World Health Organization (WHO) estimate that over 1,300 deaths may be linked to the heat wave<\/u><\/a>. And things may get worse for the continent.<\/p>

\"Europe is the fastest-warming continent on Earth<\/u><\/a>, heating at twice the global average,\" WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus posted on X<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>

By providing real-time temperature data over both water and land using its Sea and Land Surface Temperature Radiometer instrument, the Sentinel-3 satellite is providing unprecedented data about these extreme weather events and how they affect populations. <\/p>\n <\/article>\n \n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Europe’s Sentinel-3 satellite captured data that helps visualize June’s deadly heat wave, allowing researchers to further understand the extent of soaring temperatures.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":634,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[270,1263],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-61834","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-satellites","category-space-exploration"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61834"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/634"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61834"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61834\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":62063,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61834\/revisions\/62063"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61834"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61834"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61834"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}