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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.
Video from the USGS (United States Geological Survey) showed on Friday (19 September) the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii erupting and spewing lava.
At least eight people have died and more than 90 others were injured following a catastrophic gas tanker explosion on a major highway in Mexico City’s Iztapalapa district on Wednesday, authorities confirmed.
At least 69 people have died and almost 150 injured following a powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Cebu City in the central Visayas region of the Philippines, officials said, making it one of the country’s deadliest disasters this year.
A powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on 13 September with no tsunami threat, coming just weeks after the region endured a devastating 8.8-magnitude quake — the strongest since 1952.
Authorities in California have identified the dismembered body discovered in a Tesla registered to singer D4vd as 15-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, who had been missing from Lake Elsinore since April 2024.
Azerbaijan is stepping up its renewable energy ambitions with plans to develop eight new solar and wind plants by 2027, backed by $2.8 billion in investment and aimed at exceeding its 2030 climate targets ahead of schedule.
On the second day of Baku Climate Action Week (BCAW), attention centred on strengthening international cooperation, accelerating the transition to clean energy, and ensuring a fair and inclusive approach.
Super Typhoon Ragasa lashed Hong Kong with hurricane-force winds and torrential rain on Wednesday.
When Climate Week kicks off in New York City on Sunday (21 September), it will mark the largest event of its kind yet, with organisers reporting a record number of companies participating and more events than ever before.
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