WIESELBURG, AUSTRIA / RankWire.AI / – Austria recorded its hottest July temperature on July 31, when Wieselburg in Lower Austria hit 40.3 degrees Celsius. This temperature surpassed the previous July record of 39.7 degrees, set in Dellach im Drautal on July 27, 1983. GeoSphere Austria confirmed the new monthly record as an intense heatwave intensified over eastern regions. The temperature stayed below Austria’s all-time high of 40.5 degrees, measured in Bad Deutsch-Altenburg in August 2013.
The July temperature record followed a particularly extreme June, which saw widespread high temperatures across Austria. GeoSphere Austria reported that 157 out of its 277 weather stations registered new June maximum records. Additionally, 66 stations recorded their highest temperature ever for any month. Vienna reached 40.0 degrees on June 28, and Bad Deutsch-Altenburg hit 40.1 degrees the following day, establishing a new Austrian June temperature peak. Many low-altitude areas endured 10 to 14 consecutive days above 30 degrees.
Researchers at the University of Graz’s Wegener Center estimate that the heatwaves in June and late July caused approximately €1.4 billion in socioeconomic damage. This initial estimate encompasses impacts on health, productivity, infrastructure, agriculture, ecosystems, and cooling demand. The assessment considers both heat episodes using a metric that factors in heat intensity, duration, and geographic extent, rather than relying solely on the highest temperature recorded at a single station.
Nationwide heat intensity assessed by researchers
The Wegener Center calculated roughly 16,700 area-degree days for the June heatwave. Its latest analysis indicates the current event falls between 22,700 and 25,000 area-degree days. For comparison, a 24-day heatwave in July and August 2013 reached about 22,100 area-degree days. This metric measures how far temperatures above 30 degrees spread across Austria and how long those conditions last, including land up to 1,500 meters above sea level.
Austria’s health authorities also report significant human impacts from the early summer heat. The Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety estimated 395 heat-related deaths in June 2026, marking the highest June total since the agency began monitoring. Heat-associated mortality indicates deaths exceeding expected levels during extreme temperature periods, without necessarily requiring heat to be the sole cause on death certificates.
Prolonged drought worsened by record-breaking temperatures
The intense heat has intensified a drought that started in December 2025. GeoSphere Austria reported 426 millimeters of rainfall across the country from January 1 to July 27, well below the 609 millimeters average for that period, leaving a deficit of nearly 30%. The agency stated Austria has not experienced such low rainfall in the first seven months of a year since at least the early 20th century. The most affected areas include Lower Austria, Vienna, and northern Burgenland.
Persistent high-pressure systems, intense sunshine, and scarce rainfall increased evaporation rates and decreased soil moisture during late May, June, and late July. These dry conditions have stressed crops, rivers, forests, and water supplies in multiple regions. GeoSphere Austria highlighted that heatwaves are now more frequent, longer-lasting, and reaching higher temperatures than in previous decades. Records show that average maximum temperatures during heatwaves have risen by about three degrees from the 1980s to the 2020s.