The last 7 years have been Earth's 7 hottest

The big picture: According to Copernicus, the annual global average surface temperature was 1.1-1.2°C (1.98-2.16°F) above pre-industrial levels (1850-1900).

Details: Europe had its hottest summer on record, and saw deadly extreme weather events, such as the flooding that hit Germany, Belgium and several other countries in July. A study subsequently found that climate change made those floods more severe.

• The areas with the most unusual warmth during 2021 included the U.S. West Coast, parts of Canada and Greenland, much of central and northern Africa and the Middle East.
• The regions that saw cooler-than-average conditions, relative to the 1991-2020 average, were in Siberia, Alaska, parts of the Pacific Ocean, and most of Australia, Copernicus found.
• During a sizzling heat wave last summer, a preliminary European heat record was set in Sicily, where the temperature reached 48.8°C (120°F).

• Copernicus researchers found wildfire-generated greenhouse gas emissions from North America were the highest on record since such data began in 2003, as the U.S. and Canada contended with massive blazes.

Of note: Both methane and carbon dioxide, two of the leading planet-warming gases, reached new highs in 2021, with methane making a particularly large jump.

Go deeper: U.S. greenhouse gas emissions jumped in 2021