The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has issued a "Red Alert" as it reports that 2023 broke every major global climate record, with average temperatures reaching the highest level in 174 years and ocean temperatures hitting the warmest in 65 years. The WMO expressed particular concern about ocean heat and shrinking sea ice, emphasizing the irreversible nature of ocean warming and its detrimental impact on marine ecosystems and food systems. The report also highlighted the high probability of 2024 setting new heat records, with a significant plunge in Antarctic sea ice and a doubling of the rate of sea-level rise over the past decade. WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo stressed the urgent need to scale up climate action to mitigate the increasingly frequent and extreme climate events.
The UN weather agency has issued a "red alert" on climate change, citing record increases in greenhouse gases, land and water temperatures, and ice melt, warning that efforts to reverse the trend have been inadequate. The agency's report indicates a high probability of 2024 being another record-hot year, with the 12-month period from March 2023 to February 2024 averaging 1.56°C higher than pre-industrial levels. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the planet as being on the brink, with fossil fuel pollution causing climate chaos. Despite the distressing findings, the report also notes a glimmer of hope in the rise of renewable energy generation capacity, but emphasizes the urgent need for greater climate action.
Sea levels in the South-West Pacific are rising faster than the global average, posing a threat to low-lying islands and their inhabitants. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reported that water levels are increasing at a rate of about 4 mm per year in some areas, slightly above the global mean rate. This could lead to the flooding and destruction of agricultural and habitable lands in countries like Tuvalu and the Solomon Islands. Additionally, the region has experienced marine heatwaves, damaging marine ecosystems and impacting local communities. The WMO warned that the return of El Niño this year would further exacerbate the situation, bringing higher temperatures, disruptive weather patterns, and more marine heatwaves.
The World Meteorological Organization warns that global temperatures could temporarily breach the 1.5 degree Celsius benchmark outlined in the Paris Climate Accords in the next five years due to the overlap of El Niño and human-caused climate change. The WMO predicts a 66% chance of this happening and a 98% likelihood that at least one of the next five years will be the warmest on record. The warming climate has been linked to more extreme weather patterns, wildfires, and increased areal coverage of land burned.
The World Meteorological Organization warns that the world is on track to breach a key climate threshold for the first time within the next five years due to heat-trapping pollution and a looming El Niño. There is a 66% chance that the planet’s temperature will climb above 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming above pre-industrial levels for at least one year between 2023 and 2027. Breaching the 1.5-degree threshold may only be temporary, but it would be the clearest signal yet of how quickly climate change is accelerating. Countries pledged in the Paris Climate Agreement to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees, and preferably to 1.5 degrees, compared to pre-industrial temperatures.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has warned that global temperatures are now more likely than not to breach 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming within the next five years, with a 66% chance of temporarily reaching 1.5C by 2027. This is the first time in history that it's more likely than not that we will exceed 1.5C. The El Niño weather pattern expected to develop in the coming months will combine with human-induced climate change to push global temperatures into uncharted territory. The WMO also found a 98% chance that one of the next five years will be the hottest on record, surpassing 2016 which saw global temperature impacted by about 1.3C of warming.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has released its latest State of the Global Climate report, which shows that the last eight years were the warmest on record, and that sea level rise and ocean warming hit new highs. The report highlights the importance of investing in climate monitoring and early warning systems to help mitigate the humanitarian impacts of extreme weather. The WMO also stresses the need for deeper, faster emissions cuts and massively scaled-up investments in adaptation and resilience, particularly for the most vulnerable countries and communities.
