It’s been one of those summers that makes air conditioning a deal-breaker, a two-block walk unbearable, and swimming pools turn lukewarm.

Which is to say, it’s been hot AF. July 2016 will definitely be remembered as the summer of the perpetual heatwave.

It’s been so hot that, according to NASA, July 2016 was officially the hottest month ever recorded on planet Earth.

The world’s average temperature was the highest for July that the planet has experienced in the 136 years we have been keeping track.

The data comes from the Goddard Institute for Space Studies, which is responsible for measuring the temperature of the earth. The temperature findings were verified by the Japan Meteorological Agency, who found that it was the warmest July since 1891.

Globally, July was 0.86 degrees Celsius above the 20th Century average. It was 0.1 degrees warmer than the last warmest July on record, in 2011.

“It wasn’t by the widest of margins, but July 2016 was the warmest month since modern record keeping began in 1880,” said GISS Director Gavin Schmidt.

IMAGE: NASA GISS VIA GAVIN SCHMIDT

The news isn’t entirely surprising, given the trend: Since May 2015, 13 out of 14 months have either tied or set new global heat index records.

Compared to previous years, July’s warmer global temperatures were most pronounced in the northern hemisphere, especially near the Arctic region.

Earlier this year, NASA and NOAA announced that 2015 had been the warmest year on record to date. The way things are looking, Schmidt believes there is a 99 per cent chance that 2016 will top it.

What’s that about global warming not being a ‘thing’?

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