In addition to the record -high global average temperature 2024, further indicators show the progress of climate change. Many consequences of warming are already irreversible, at least for hundreds or thousands of years, according to the report on the state of the world climate of global weather organization (WMO). This includes ice loss and sea level increase. “Our planet is sending out more and more stress signals,” warned UN Secretary General António Guterres.
Some highlights of the report:
- In 2024, the global average temperature was around 1.55 degrees above the level before industrialization (1850-1900), as climate researchers had already reported in January.
- The past eight years have recorded each record in the warming of the oceans. The measurements began in 1960. The oceans are very important for the earth's climate, because they absorb around 90 percent of the heat caused by the increase in greenhouse gases.
- The last three years have reached all new low points with less than two million square kilometers during the lowest ice expansion in Antarctic. The measurements began in 1979.
- The glaciers worldwide lost as much mass in the past three years as ever in a three -year period since the measurements started in the 1970s.
- The sea level increase has more than doubled to 4.7 millimeters per year since the start of satellite measurements in 1993.
2024 was the warmest year since the start of the measurement
The climate is a tremendous system: the trend towards ever increasing temperatures would still last in the extremely unlikely case of an ended greenhouse gas emissions.
The year 2024 was the first since the start of the measurement, which was an average of over 1.5 degrees worldwide warmer than in pre -industrial means. It was also the warmest year. In the Paris climate agreement, it was agreed in 2015 to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees as possible above the pre -industrial level.
The agreement refers to temperature deviations that are average over a period of at least 20 years. According to the WMO, the long -term value is currently between 1.34 and 1.41 degrees above pre -industrial level.
The particularly strong increase in global average temperature 2023 and 2024 also had to do with natural phenomena such as the weather pattern El Niño and solar activity, the report also says.
