In a stark warning to humanity, Earth has experienced an unprecedented 12-month period of temperatures surpassing 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels for the first time on record, according to Europe’s climate monitor, the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S).
The surge in temperatures, fueled by climate change intensified by the natural El Nino phenomenon, has unleashed a barrage of extreme weather events, including storms, droughts, and wildfires across the globe. Scientists attribute the record warming in 2023 to the combined effects of climate change and the El Nino phenomenon, making it likely the hottest year in the past 100,000 years.
The extremes have persisted into 2024, with Copernicus confirming that February 2023 to January 2024 saw temperatures soaring to 1.52 degrees Celsius above the 19th-century benchmark. While this exceeds the crucial 1.5C warming threshold outlined in the Paris climate agreement, scientists caution that it does not signify a permanent breach of the limit, which is assessed over decades.
“We are touching 1.5C, and we see the cost, the social costs, and economic costs,” remarked Johan Rockstrom of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. “1.5 is a very big number, and it hurts us really badly in terms of heat waves, droughts, floods, reinforced storms, water scarcity across the entire world. That is what 2023 has taught us.”
The onslaught of extremes has underscored the urgency of addressing climate change, with soaring temperatures posing grave threats to ecosystems and human societies worldwide. Recent months have witnessed devastating droughts in the Amazon basin, unprecedented winter temperatures in southern Europe, deadly wildfires in South America, and record rainfall in California.
Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of C3S, highlighted the gravity of the situation, stating, “2024 starts with another record-breaking month—not only is it the warmest January on record, but we have also just experienced a 12-month period of more than 1.5C above the pre-industrial reference period.”
To mitigate the impacts of climate change, urgent action is needed to reduce planet-heating emissions, primarily from fossil fuel combustion. Scientists warn that without significant emissions reductions, the world is on track to surpass the 1.5C threshold outlined in the Paris agreement in the early 2030s.
“The succession of very hot years is bad news for both nature and people who are feeling the impacts of these extreme years,” emphasized Joeri Rogelj, professor of climate science and policy at Imperial College London. “Unless global emissions are urgently brought down to zero, the world will soon fly past the safety limits set out in the Paris climate agreement.”
As Earth grapples with the consequences of rising temperatures, the need for concerted global action to curb emissions and mitigate climate impacts has never been more urgent.
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