As Europe braces for another heatwave with highs expected to reach between 35C and 40C, some might take solace from the fact that these temperatures remain well below the region's record.

The highest temperature ever recorded on European soil was 48C. It was observed in Greece in 1977.

Some 17 EU member states have in the past sweltered under above-40C temperatures. Predictably, most of these are in the south.

Ireland, meanwhile, has the lowest temperature high of the region with a record of 33.3C registered 132 years ago.

Check out the highest temperature ever recorded in each EU member state in the player above or in the following interactive infographic.

Studies predict that heatwaves are to become the new normal in Europe as a consequence of climate change and records for warmest months are consistently broken.

For instance, between April 2018 and March 2019, Europe experienced its warmest twelve-month period on record.

The highest temperature ever recorded was in 1913 in California's Death Valley when the mercury hit 56.7C.