One in Six People Felt Climate-Driven Heat Every Day for Three Months

More than one in every six people worldwide experienced temperatures strongly influenced by climate change every day from December 2025 through February 2026, according to a global analysis published by Climate Central on March 18, 2026. In India, Srinagar recorded the highest climate-driven heat exposure among Indian cities, with 60 days at Climate Shift Index level 2, meaning temperatures were twice as likely due to climate change.

Climate Central's analysis used its Climate Shift Index to assess how much human-caused warming boosted daily temperatures across 124 countries over the three-month period. The study found that 2.5 billion people across 124 countries endured at least 30 days with temperatures strongly influenced by climate change. Climate change was responsible for every single day of dangerous heat in 47 countries during the period. Approximately 225 million people experienced 30 or more days of risky heat attributable directly to climate change, and 81 per cent of those affected live in Africa.

India, in general, experienced fewer climate-change-triggered heat days than many other countries, with six days at CSI level 2 over the three months. However, several Indian cities were significantly more affected. Thane and Navi Mumbai recorded CSI +2 status for 18 and 17 days respectively, while cities in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh recorded 11-16 days of elevated climate influence. India Meteorological Department data confirmed that north and west India were simultaneously experiencing unprecedentedly high temperatures during March 2026.

The report linked the heat pattern directly to continued burning of fossil fuels, including coal, oil and methane gas. Wildfires in Patagonia claimed 23 lives; drought covered over 40 per cent of the United States; Japan experienced deadly snowfall attributed to climate change; and heavy rainfall killed more than 1,750 people in Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand. Scientists found that snow volumes observed in parts of Germany in January 2026 that now occur every 50 years would have occurred every six years in the pre-industrial climate. The analysis concluded that climate change is a present-day, measurable driver of extreme weather for billions of people.

Key figure — 2.5 billion people across 124 countries endured at least 30 days of climate-influenced temperatures