On July 28, 2023, when the Rossmoor Lake wildfire plan was ignited in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada, a change in wind direction caused the flames to intensify.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
A string of climate records last year gave new meaning to the word “record-breaking”, the United Nations weather agency said on Tuesday, warning that the planet is now on the verge of exceeding a critical warming threshold.
In its annual State of the Global Climate report, researchers from the World Meteorological Organization outline how extreme weather events in 2023 could wreak havoc on millions of people around the world and cause billions of dollars in economic losses.
Indicators such as greenhouse gas levels, ocean heating and acidification, sea level rise, Antarctic sea ice cover and glacier retreat are all breaking records and, in some cases, being broken, the World Meteorological Organization said.
proved 2023 is the hottest year on record It said the period from 2014 to 2023 also reflects the hottest 10-year period on record.
Researchers say global average temperatures in 2023 will be 1.45 degrees Celsius higher than pre-industrial times, just below the key warming threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius.
1.5 degrees Celsius is widely considered an indicator of when climate impacts will become increasingly harmful to people and the planet, as outlined in the landmark Paris Agreement.
All the major indicators are sounding the alarm…some records are not only topping the charts, but even breaking them. And change is accelerating.
Antonio Guterres
united nations secretary general
Climate crisis is exacerbating extreme temperatures, with key drivers burning of fossil fuels.
“We have never been closer to the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C lower limit on climate change, albeit temporarily,” WMO Secretary-General Celeste Soro said in a statement.
“The World Meteorological Organization is sounding a red alert for the world,” she said.
“Climate change is about more than just temperature. What we witness in 2023, especially unprecedented ocean warming, glacier retreat and loss of Antarctic sea ice, deserves special attention.”
“Sirens sounding”
The report was released shortly after the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service It is said that the global annual temperature exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius for the first time.
However, findings released last month by the EU’s climate monitoring agency do not represent a violation of the 2015 Paris Agreement. The goal of the climate agreement is to “limit global warming in the long term to well below 2 degrees Celsius, preferably 1.5 degrees Celsius, below pre-industrial levels”.
Still, scientists have repeatedly stressed the urgent need to cut greenhouse gas emissions to avoid the worst of the climate crisis.
Women walk through floodwaters in Beledweyne, central Somalia, on May 12, 2023.
Hassan Ali Elmi | AFP | Getty Images
“The Earth is sending out a distress signal,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Tuesday.
“The latest report on the state of the global climate shows a planet on the brink of collapse. Fossil fuel pollution is causing climate chaos,” he added.
“All the major indicators are sounding the alarm…some records are not just topping the charts but breaking them. And change is accelerating.”
The world has become warmer About 1.1 degrees Celsius After more than a century of burning fossil fuels and unequal and unsustainable energy and land use.
“A glimmer of hope”
The World Meteorological Organization reports that on average every day in 2023, nearly one-third of the world’s oceans will be affected by marine heat waves, damaging important ecosystems and food systems.
However, renewable energy generation has been described as a “silver lining”.
The World Meteorological Organization said that renewable energy generation has become a top climate action issue in 2023, citing its potential to help achieve decarbonization goals.
In fact, researchers say new renewable energy installation capacity will increase by nearly 50% in 2023, reaching 510 gigawatts. The agency said this was the highest rate observed in the past two decades.
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