Daily Briefing: Earth's hottest day?

For the third day in a row, the Earth's average temperature remained at a record high. Also in the news: U.N. regulators say not to be concerned about water containing radioactive material set to be released into the ocean and Novak Djokovic has joined an exclusive Wimbledon club.

🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. A Texas man was reported missing for eight years. He had been living with his mom.

Now, here we go with Thursday's headlines.

Is Earth at its warmest in 125,000 years?

In the latest indicator of climate-change-driven extremes, Earth’s average temperature remained at a record high Wednesday, after two days in which the planet reached unofficial records.

It comes as scientists say the planet is the hottest it has been in roughly 125,000 years. Experts believe more heat records will fall this summer.

• The average global temperature was 17.18 Celsius (62.9 degrees Fahrenheit), according to the University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer, the highest temperature for that data set since records began in 1979.

• The unusual warmth is the result of a combination of human-caused climate change, the strengthening El Niño and the start of summer in the Northern Hemisphere.

• Arizona and Florida residents should brace for yet even more high temperatures Thursday, and heat advisories are also placed in Florida where temperatures could set records.

Russian attack on Ukraine city of Lviv kills 4 people

Russia has fired cruise missiles at a western Ukraine city far from the front line of the war, killing at least four people in an apartment building. On Thursday, Ukrainian officials said it was the heaviest attack on civilian areas of Lviv since the Kremlin’s forces invaded Ukraine last year. Mayor Andriy Sadovyi said around 60 apartments and 50 cars were damaged. Meanwhile, the president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, says Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is in St. Petersburg and his Wagner troops have remained at the camps they stayed in before an attempted mutiny against Moscow. Lukashenko said last week that Prigozhin was in Belarus. Read more

• The war would end within days if the West stopped arming Ukraine, Russia said.

• Nine Army veterans were arrested for crimes committed with a Georgia biker gang.

More news to know now

• Cocaine was found in a ''heavily traveled area'' of the White House, Karine Jean-Pierre says.

• A Lancaster County building exploded, damaging nearly a dozen homes.

• Wisconsin's governor got creative with a veto, increasing public school funding for 400 years.

• From Philadelphia to Fort Worth, Fourth of July shootings claimed lives across the country.

• On today's 5 Things podcast, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds calls legislative special session to pass new Iowa abortion restrictions. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your smart speaker.

What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.

Japan can release Fukushima water with radioactive material, UN says

Twelve years after an earthquake and tsunami destroyed parts of the Fukushima nuclear plant and contaminated water supplies, the United Nations has approved Japan's highly anticipated waste disposal plan, which includes slowly discharging treated, radioactive water into the ocean. The U.N. atomic energy agency says the initiative, first announced in 2021, meets international standards and will have negligible effects on the sea environment and people's health. But the discharge method has drawn criticism from fisheries and and nearby countries, leading to a spike in seafood costs. Read more

• Japanese researchers developed wearable robotic arms.

QAnon stalker arrested near Obama's home is an ongoing threat

Federal prosecutors on Wednesday sought to keep in custody an armed man known as a QAnon conspiracy theorist who was arrested near President Barack Obama's Washington D.C. house last week, saying he's a delusional and ongoing danger who threatened other high-level officials including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Taylor Taranto, wanted in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol attack, was arrested June 29 after eluding a daylong police manhunt that began after he threatened to detonate explosives in his van while parked at a federal building in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Read more

• ''Securing our digital infrastructure'': Delta, Southwest airlines move to ban TikTok for employees.

• After the Jack Teixeira leak, the Pentagon will target ''insider threats'' to classified documents.

Just for subscribers:

• The Trump trial of the millennium puts spotlight on his legal team. Here are the pros and cons.

• The strange story of why Kentucky officials must swear they never fought in a duel.

• How a summer of extreme weather reveals a stunning shift in the way rain falls in America.

• An old pet cemetery in Michigan is a prestigious resting place for military, police dogs.

These articles are for USA TODAY subscribers. You can sign up here. 

Novak Djokovic makes history at Wimbledon

Novak Djokovic made history on Wednesday when he won his second-round match at Wimbledon. After beating Australia's Jordan Thompson in straight sets, the Serbian star and No. 2 seed captured his 350th singles victory in a Grand Slam tournament. Djokovic joins Serena Williams and Roger Federer as the only players in tennis history to win at least 350 Grand Slam matches. Williams has 367 and Federer has 369. Read more

Quick hits

• Facebook launched its Twitter rival via Instagram: What to know about Threads.

• Officials are warning of an expected uptick in student loan forgiveness scams.

• Amazon Prime Day 2023 is next week — sign up today to shop the best deals.

• A Taylor Swift fan went into labor during the concert: ''People say that I started my new era.''

Photo of the day:  Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week 2023

Stars are flocking to France this week to watch Chanel, Christian Dior and more designers share their haute couture fall/winter collections. Click here to read about the latest looks, including Florence Pugh's sartorial sheer sequel.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com or follow along with her musings on Twitter. Support journalism like this – subscribe to USA TODAY here.

Associated Press contributed reporting.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Daily Briefing: Earth's hottest day?