For the first time in history: global temperature exceeds the critical limit of 1.5°C in 2024
Kyiv • UNN
In 2024, the global average temperature exceeded the threshold of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels for the first time. The record warming is caused by anthropogenic changes and the El Niño phenomenon.
The average temperature has surpassed the symbolic limit set by the Paris Agreement to combat climate change. The year 2024 was marked by megalithic fires in South America, Canada, and Europe, drought in the Amazon and Pantanal, floods in the Sahara, and devastating hurricanes in the United States.
Transmits to UNN with reference to Globo and New Scientist.
New data has confirmed that 2024 was the first calendar year when average temperatures exceeded the critical threshold of 1.5°C. Last year was recognized as the hottest year on record, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
The EU's Copernicus meteorological service:
2024 was the warmest year since scientific observations began in 1850.
The European Union's Copernicus climate change service has data on the temperature in 2024: an excess of 1.6 °C was recorded compared to pre-industrial levels, and the temperature in 2024 is also said to be 0.12 °C higher than the record in 2023.
What caused the temperature jump
Scientists agree that the temperature spike was caused mainly by the continuation of anthropogenic climate change and the El Niño weather phenomenon, which tends to increase global temperatures. But the scale and duration of the heat wave shocked many experts, who expected temperatures to drop after El Niño ended in May 2024. Instead, it remained at record levels for the rest of the year.
According to the analytical data, in 2024, the concentration of carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere continued to increase and reached record annual levels in 2024: 422 parts per million (ppm) and 1897 parts per billion (ppb), respectively.
Carbon dioxide concentrations in 2024 were 2.9 ppm higher than in 2023, and methane concentrations were 3 ppm higher.
2024 was the hottest year in China: temperatures hit record highs02.01.25, 22:30 • 26396 views
It is noted that the world's oceans have suffered the most, as sea surface temperatures have remained at record levels for most of 2024, harming marine ecosystems.
The year was accompanied by extreme weather conditions on land: extreme heat, a sharp decline in polar ice, deadly floods and uncontrolled forest fires.
All continents broke records.
The center of South America and Mexico was boiling like never before
Mega-wildfires like the one currently burning in Hollywood have scorched parts of South America, Canada, and Europe. The Amazon and the Pantanal have dried up. The Sahara was flooded. Floods in Brazil and Spain inundated cities.
“This has been a year when the effects of climate change are being felt across the planet,” says David King, former chief scientific adviser to the UK government and founder of the Climate Crisis Advisory Group.
HelpHelp
Technically, the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting warming to below 1.5°C is calculated based on a 20-year average, so one year of exceeding the threshold does not mean a formal violation of the goal. But given the rate of warming in recent years, many scientists argue that the long-term goal of the Paris Agreement is no longer achievable.
Recall
At the COP29 summit, the EU, the US, and other developed countries agreed to increase climate finance to $300 billion annually by 2035. The previous proposal of $250 billion was rejected as insufficient.
