Record greenhouse gas levels in 2024 have driven global temperatures to an all-time high, accelerating the loss of glaciers and sea ice, raising sea levels, and bringing the world closer to a key climate threshold, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Record greenhouse gas levels pushed temperatures to an unprecedented high in 2024, accelerating the loss of glaciers and sea ice, raising sea levels, and edging the world closer to a critical climate threshold, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
The WMO’s annual climate report revealed that global average temperatures in 2024 were 1.55°C (2.79°F) above pre-industrial levels, surpassing the previous 2023 record by 0.1°C. This puts the world perilously close to exceeding the 1.5°C temperature increase limit set by the 2015 Paris Agreement. While various factors, including a shift in the solar cycle, a significant volcanic eruption, and a reduction in cooling aerosols, contributed to last year’s temperature spike, the primary driver remains the record levels of greenhouse gas emissions.
The report highlighted the dire consequences of these temperature increases, with extreme weather events causing widespread devastation. Droughts led to severe food shortages, while floods and wildfires displaced over 800,000 people—the highest number since records began in 2008.
Meanwhile, ocean heat reached its highest recorded levels, with warming rates accelerating. Rising carbon dioxide concentrations in the ocean also contributed to increasing acidification, further threatening marine life.
The accelerated melting of glaciers and sea ice pushed sea levels to a new high. From 2015 to 2024, sea levels rose by an average of 4.7 millimeters per year—more than double the 2.1 millimeters annually recorded between 1993 and 2002, according to WMO data.
John Kennedy, WMO’s scientific coordinator, also warned of the broader, long-term impacts of the melting ice in polar regions. “Changes in those areas could influence global ocean circulation patterns, which in turn can affect global climate,” he explained. "What happens in the poles doesn’t stay at the poles."
While preliminary estimates suggest the long-term average temperature increase is between 1.34°C and 1.41°C, bringing the world close to the Paris target, the WMO clarified that a single year exceeding 1.5°C does not necessarily indicate a breach of the Paris Agreement threshold. However, due to uncertainty in the data, it cannot be completely ruled out, Kennedy said during a briefing.
NASA's new flagship astronomical observatory was launched into space from Florid...
At least 37 people were killed after a Russian drone strike hit an ammunition depot in the Kyiv region, triggering powerful secondary explosions&nb...
Iran has reached an understanding with Oman on transit arrangements through the Strait of Hormuz, but the waterway will remain closed until the U.S...
Iran is setting conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, including an end to the war, the lifting of the U.S. blockade and sanctions. At the same time, Washington is stepping up economic pressure on Tehran through what the White House calls “Operation Economic Outcast.”
Mail sorting centres used by Nova Poshta, Ukraine's largest private postal company, were destroyed in Russian strikes overnight, the firm said. Elsewhere, four people were injured after drones struck an apartment building in Sevastopol, Crimea, according to the Moscow-installed governor.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused U.S. government and Israel-aligned actors of manipulating energy markets to promote the war with Iran.
Russian strikes on the Kyiv region overnight killed 37 people, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. Zelenskyy added that the Ukrainian capital was under "virtually nonstop attack" from drones.
Iran has reached an understanding with Oman on transit arrangements through the Strait of Hormuz, but the waterway will remain closed until the U.S. fulfils its commitments, a senior Iranian diplomat said on Saturday.
Vast flocks of storks passed through Türkiye and the Bosporus this week as part of their annual autumn migration from European breeding grounds toward Africa and the Middle East.
China's coastal areas and southern regions are preparing for days of intense precipitation, with tens of thousands of people evacuated as Typhoon Narra tracks inland and another storm churns toward the country's eastern seaboard.
A wildfire in Croatia driven by strong winds descended on the tourist town of Omis overnight, engulfing houses, forcing about 1,000 people to evacuate to safety and injuring dozens, fire brigade and health officials said on Friday.
Rhossi, a rare Kemp’s ridley sea turtle that washed up near death on a Welsh beach in 2023, has returned to Texas after more than two years of rehabilitation in the UK.
Glacier coverage in Kyrgyzstan’s Issyk-Kul Basin has shrunk by 33.7 per cent over the past 70–90 years, according to an updated glacier inventory by Kyrgyzhydromet. The agency says the pace of glacier retreat has accelerated sharply in recent years.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment