By Abbas Nazil
The year 2024 has officially been confirmed the hottest since global temperature records began.
The year witnessed average temperatures exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial baseline of 1850-1900 for the first time.
Scientists from the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S)Ade the declaration, confirming that the unprecedented warming is largely attributed to human-induced climate change.
Data from January to November indicates that 2024 will retain its status as the warmest year on record, driven by rising carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel use and the lingering effects of the El Niño weather phenomenon.
These extraordinary temperatures are expected to persist into the first few months of 2025, raising concerns over worsening climate impacts.
Extreme weather events have marked 2024 as a year of devastating climate crises.
Severe droughts crippled regions such as Italy and South America, while catastrophic floods in Nepal, Sudan, and parts of Europe caused widespread destruction and loss of life.
Simultaneously, deadly heatwaves swept through Mexico, Mali, and Saudi Arabia, claiming thousands of lives. Cyclones wreaked havoc in the United States and the Philippines, leaving trails of destruction in their wake.
Scientific analyses have unequivocally linked these events to human-driven global warming.
November 2024 emerged as the second-warmest November ever recorded, following closely behind November 2023.
“We’re still in near-record-high territory for global temperatures, and that trend is likely to continue for at least a few more months,” said Julien Nicolas, a climate researcher at C3S.
The findings come amid growing global efforts to combat climate change. Recent U.N. climate negotiations resulted in a $300 billion agreement to address climate-related disasters, but many developing nations criticized the package as inadequate to meet the soaring costs of such events.
While nations have pledged to achieve net-zero emissions, 2024 is set to witness record-high global carbon dioxide emissions, highlighting the gap between promises and action.
Looking ahead to 2025, scientists are closely monitoring the potential development of a La Niña weather pattern. La Niña, associated with cooling ocean surface temperatures, could offer temporary relief by slightly moderating global temperatures.
However, experts emphasize that this would only mask the long-term warming trend driven by greenhouse gas emissions.
“Even if La Niña occurs, temperatures will remain dangerously high, with continued risks of heatwaves, wildfires, droughts, and tropical cyclones,” explained Friederike Otto, a senior lecturer at Imperial College London.
C3S, which maintains records dating back to 1940 and cross-checks historical data from as far back as 1850, confirmed that the current warming trend represents an alarming escalation of climate impacts.
This year’s record-breaking temperatures underscore the urgency for more aggressive measures to cut emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change.
As the impacts of climate change become more severe, calls for immediate and effective action grow louder.
The evidence is clear: without significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, global temperatures will continue to rise, amplifying the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events worldwide.