2023 will be the warmest year since records began
Since June, one global temperature record has followed the next. Up to and including November, every month has been the hottest since records began. The first major climate institution has decided that 2023 will go down in history as the warmest year to date. Even a colder December cannot change this.
According to the EU climate change service Copernicus, the current year will be the warmest globally since records began in the mid-19th century. According to the organization, it is practically impossible for December to change this. The warmest year to date was 2016, and it had already been assumed that 2023 would set a record for global average temperatures. In mid-November, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said there was a more than 99% chance that the year would be the warmest since 1850. However, none of the relevant institutions had yet fully committed themselves.
Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), pointed out in a statement that 2023 had set temperature records for several months at once - including for November. "The exceptional global November temperatures, including two days that reached a temperature two degrees above pre-industrial levels, mean that 2023 is the warmest year on record."
A Copernicus spokesperson explained that December temperatures would have to be extremely cold on a global average for 2023 not to be the warmest year. However, such low temperatures can be ruled out, as the natural climate phenomenon El Niño continues to have a warming effect. "That's why we can now say with great certainty that 2023 will be the warmest year since records began," said the spokesperson.
0.13 degrees warmer than 2016
According to Copernicus, global average temperatures up to and including November were 1.46 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial reference period of 1850-1900. According to Copernicus, the months from June to November were the hottest worldwide since records began. This means that 2023 has so far been 0.13 degrees warmer than the first eleven months of the previous record holder 2016. "As long as greenhouse gas concentrations continue to rise, we cannot expect any results other than those observed this year," said C3S Director Carlo Buontempo. "The temperature will continue to rise and so will the impact of heatwaves and droughts."
Just yesterday, the Global Carbon Budget report showed that global CO2 emissions from fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas are continuing to rise. They are expected to reach a record level of 36.8 billion tons per year in 2023. This is 1.1 percent more than in 2022 and 1.4 percent more than in the pre-corona year 2019.
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In light of the ongoing global warming, there's a pressing need for robust climate policies. Education about climate change and its impacts is crucial in encouraging sustainable practices and fostering climate-conscious societies. The current year, marked by record-breaking temperatures, serves as a stark reminder of the consequences of inaction against climate change, particularly in arid regions where droughts and heatwaves pose significant threats.
Source: www.ntv.de
