The European State of the Climate (ESOTC) 2025 report released today, paints a picture of accelerated rising temperatures across the globe, with Europe warming at more than double the speed of the global average.

The report points to the latest assessment of ice mass balance from the Ice Sheet Mass Balance Intercomparison Project (IMBIE) led by CPOM’s Co-Director of Science Dr Inès Otosaka, which shows ice loss from the Greenland ice sheet at 139 billion tonnes during 2025* (see figure 1).

The polar ice sheets, in Greenland and Antarctica, store a significant proportion of the Earth’s freshwater. When they melt, they contribute this freshwater to the oceans, not only increasing sea levels, but also affecting ocean circulation. Estimates of the Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheets mass balance produced by IMBIE, an international collaboration of polar scientists led by CPOM and supported by the space agencies ESA and NASA, are used in this report’s key climate indicator on Ice Sheets.

The report also includes other events across the cryosphere related to warming, including a three-week heatwave in sub-Arctic Fennoscandia with Arctic temperatures going over 30°C*. Glaciers across Europe also retreated, including in Iceland where the country saw the second worst loss of glaciers in recorded history*.

Rising sea surface temperatures, marine heatwaves, reduced river flows, and extensive wildfires are included in the report as key impacts of the rapid warming*.

About the European State of the Climate report

The European State of the Climate report is an annual report compiled by the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and implemented by ECMWF on behalf of the European Commission.

With 100 scientific contributors, including experts in cold environments, the report features graphics and visuals reflecting the most up-to-date data, providing an all-encompassing view of the state of the climate and important changes in climate indicators impacting the continent.

Climate change, and the associated impact on the cryosphere, affects ecosystems around the world. Although the report references important actions in European policy and frameworks focussing on improving ecosystem resilience, this report calls for enhanced and ‘accelerating’ progress in protecting nature and biodiversity, in light of rapidly increasing changes in the climate.

About IMBIE

The IMBIE Project (Ice Sheet Mass Balance Intercomparison Project) was launched in 2011, and funded by the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA. IMBIE aims to reconcile satellite-based measurements of ice sheet mass balance through community efforts, to reduce uncertainties in estimates of Antarctica and Greenland ice loss and constrain projections of future sea level rise. Data produced by the IMBIE Team are widely used by leading organisations, including by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The IMBIE Team has produced three assessments during this period, in 2012, 2018 and 2023.

*C3S/ECMWF and WMO, 2026: C3S-WMO European State of the Climate 2025, climate.copernicus.eu/ESOTC/2025, doi.org/10.24381/zy93-sb27

It is with great sadness that the Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling (CPOM) learned of the passing of Professor Lord Julian Hunt of Chesterton. We write to convey our deepest condolences to his family and all who were close to him.

Julian was an early and influential member of CPOM when the Centre was established at University College London, and his involvement in those early years left an enduring mark on what it became. He brought to CPOM a wealth of experience that few could match. Having served as Director General and Chief Executive of the Met Office from 1992 to 1997 — one of the most senior scientific leadership roles in British science — he arrived at UCL with an exceptional command of atmospheric dynamics, environmental fluid mechanics, and the practical demands of weather and climate prediction at the highest level. It was this breadth, spanning fundamental theory and real-world application, that made his contribution to CPOM’s early meteorological programme so distinctive.

At CPOM, Julian led research into polar atmospheric boundary layer processes and mesoscale meteorology — the complex dynamics of atmospheric flows over polar surfaces, coastlines, and topography that are so critical to understanding the cryosphere. This work was both theoretically rigorous and of direct practical relevance to polar forecasting. He collaborated widely, producing research that made a lasting contribution to the field. His work included studies of Coriolis effects in mesoscale flows with sharp changes in surface conditions as well as investigations into the influence of coastal geometry and surface discontinuities on polar wind patterns. Together they also advanced understanding of how changing surface heat fluxes affect atmospheric boundary-layer flow, work carried out with colleagues across several institutions and reflective of Julian’s natural gift for building international scientific collaborations.

Those of us fortunate enough to work alongside Julian remember him not only for his formidable intellect, but for the tremendous energy and kindness he brought to everything he did. He was warm and thoughtful in equal measure, and made those around him feel both challenged and supported. He had an inexhaustible enthusiasm for ideas and for the people pursuing them. Beyond his science, Julian stood apart for his fierce commitment to social justice and his deep conviction that science must serve the public good. These values animated his work and his public life in equal measure. He was also a man who spoke openly and proudly of his family, and it was clear to all who knew him that they were his greatest source of pride.

Julian’s legacy lives on in the work of CPOM and in the many researchers whose careers and thinking he shaped. He will be greatly missed, and fondly remembered.

With our sincere condolences,

Professor Andrew Shepherd, CPOM Director
Professor Sir Duncan Wingham, Founding CPOM Director
Dr Andrew Orr
Professor Danny Feltham
Ms Leisa Clemente