The United Nations has warned that there is a “high probability” that 2024 will see record-breaking temperatures, after the previous year concluded a decade that was the hottest on record, pushing the planet “to the brink.”
The UN announced that the past decade was the hottest on record, causing dangerous climate impacts, such as melting glaciers and unprecedented ocean heatwaves in 2023.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said: “The planet is on the brink, while fossil fuel pollution is causing unprecedented climate chaos.”
However, he added: “There is still time to save humanity and the planet, but we must act now.”
A report released by the UN’s World Meteorological Organization (WMO) showed that records were broken for greenhouse gas levels, land surface temperatures, ocean heat content, ocean acidification, sea level rise, and the extent of Arctic sea ice, as well as glacier retreat.
Omar Baddour of the WMO told a press conference: “I think there is a high probability that 2024 will break the record of 2023 again.”
The report confirmed that 2023 was the warmest year on record, with the global surface temperature averaging 1.45 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
The WMO noted that the arrival of the El Niño climate phenomenon in mid-2023 contributed to the rapid rise in temperatures.
WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo said: “What we saw in 2023, especially in terms of unprecedented ocean heat and glacier retreat, is very concerning.”
