As a record-breaking heatwave scorches Europe, the scenes—children hosed down in London, shoppers scrambling for fans in Paris—offer a glimpse of a continent struggling to cope. On this episode of On Assignment, host Jonah Green speaks with data journalist Ben Welsh, who built Reuters’ new Climate Monitor to measure just how unusual this moment really is. By comparing today’s temperatures to historical norms, the tool illustrates how today’s hot weather truly is a sharp departure from the past, and a glimpse of the future.

Check out the Climate Monitor for yourself here.