Though not as widespread globally as in 2010, excessive heat events left their mark worldwide during the past year, resulting in at least six new national high temperature records. Across North America, the key stories were the excessive duration of very high temperatures across the southern plains of the US, with among other records, 71 days of maximum temperatures of at least 38°C (100°F) at Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. Farther north, though the heat wave was shorter in duration, maximum temperatures exceeded those recorded over the past decade. Several records were set, including 42°C (108°F) at Newark, New Jersey on July 22; unusually high humidity levels, including a record high dew point of 28°C (82°F) at Minneapolis-St. Paul, led to very high Heat Indices, with numerous stations exceeding 50°C (122°F) as far north as Toronto, Ontario. Preliminary figures suggest heat-related mortality across North America was well into the hundreds.

Elsewhere, it was the second consecutive summer with record heat across the Persian Gulf and southwestern Asia, with Mitribah, Kuwait exceeding 50°C (123°F) fifteen times, including a record 53.3°C (128°F) on August 3; all-time national records were also set in Iraq and Iran. An excessive heat event with more than a dozen fatalities also occurred in southern and southeastern Europe in late August, in which an all-time maximum temperature was observed at Florence, Italy. A heat event in Japan in June led to at least 26 fatalities and more than 10,000 hospitalizations, as the hot weather combined with continuing concerns about the adequacy of Japan's power grid led to increased vulnerability as residents cut back on air conditioning use.