From Delhi to Buenos Aires, June Opens with a Cascade of Weather Extremes

The opening days of June 2026 have delivered a planet-spanning array of meteorological disruption, with extreme heat, torrential rains, and seasonal anomalies striking continents simultaneously. From a delayed monsoon over the Indian subcontinent to violent thunderstorms marching across France, and from an intense heatwave scorching a dozen Mexican states to heavy fog blanketing the Argentine pampas, the first week of the month has become a stage for climatic volatility that transcends any single region. While local forecasters scramble to issue warnings, a broader trend is emerging: many of these events are occurring in a world adjusting to the early stirrings of a new El Niño cycle, which climatologists believe will amplify existing weather patterns in the months ahead.

Across Asia, the southwest monsoon — the lifeblood of India’s farm economy — is running behind schedule. The India Meteorological Department said conditions were becoming favourable for its advance over Kerala within two to three days, but noted that the season's onset was later than the normal 1 June date. In the meantime, a combination of a lingering heat dome and pre-monsoonal moisture has triggered thunderstorms, hail, and heavy downpours across States from Uttarakhand to Tamil Nadu, with some stations recording up to 14 cm of rain in a single day. Over in Indonesia, the meteorology and geophysics agency (BMKG) issued warnings for heavy to very heavy rain in West Java and high winds in Aceh, Bali, and the Riau Islands, while much of Sulawesi and Papua were bracing for persistent showers. Further west, Iranian authorities cautioned that strong winds and dust storms would hit Tehran and surrounding provinces, even as separate systems delivered rainfall to the northern coast along the Caspian.

Europe found itself caught between contrasting air masses. In France, forecasters warned of a pronounced deterioration on Tuesday, with violent storms, intense rainfall, and squalls affecting Brittany and the Pays de la Loire before sweeping across the Paris Basin toward the Grand Est. Italy’s Centre-North braced for a similar barrage, with thunder, hail, and gusts up to 85 km/h prompting a yellow alert across Emilia-Romagna and neighbouring regions. The European anomalies were not uniformly wet, however: Sweden’s west coast anticipated a sunny respite with temperatures climbing to 25°C by midweek, while Moscow was set to see a gradual warming to 26°C by the weekend, well above the seasonal norm. For much of the continent, the sudden shift ended a period of unseasonable warmth, bringing temperatures down by five to seven degrees in a matter of hours.

In the Americas, the divide was even sharper. Mexico's national weather service reported that a heat dome would push thermometers above 40°C in States from Sinaloa to Chiapas, even as a cyclonic circulation and humidity from the Caribbean were dumping torrential rain on the Yucatán Peninsula. Argentina, by contrast, faced a bitterly cold and damp start to the month: a violet-level fog alert remained in place for seven provinces, reducing visibility to near zero on highways, while a new frontal system threatened to bring a 24-hour deluge — potentially the season's most significant rainfall event — to the centre and north of the country. Brazil showcased the subcontinent's vast climatic diversity: while Goiânia and Cuiabá baked under clear skies and low humidity, Belo Horizonte was set for a sharp midweek drenching, and the southern state of Paraná prepared for a fresh cold snap that could depress temperatures two degrees below the historical average for June.