Heat Records Shattered: Earth Experiences Unprecedented Warmth, Sets Course for Hottest Year

For the sixth consecutive month, Earth has broken the record for the hottest month, and the trend continued into autumn, making 2023 poised to become the hottest year on record. According to the European Space Agency’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, November was nearly 0.57 degrees Celsius (1.03 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter than the previous hottest November, reaching 1.75 degrees Celsius (3.15 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial times. This ties with September as the hottest above-average month, coming in behind October.

With an average temperature of 14.22 degrees Celsius (57.6 degrees Fahrenheit), November was 0.85 degrees Celsius (1.5 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than the average of the last 30 years. Notably, two days in the month were 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than pre-industrial times, a first according to Copernicus Deputy Director Samantha Burgess.

2023 is on track to be 1.46 degrees Celsius (2.6 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than pre-industrial times, approaching the previous warmest year in 2016 by about a seventh of a degree. This closeness to the international climate change threshold is a significant concern. The Paris Agreement’s goal is to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, or at least 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in the long term.

The ongoing UN climate conference in Dubai aims to address this challenge, but the planet’s increasing temperatures present a formidable obstacle. Despite global promises and actions, Earth is currently projected to warm 2.7 to 2.9 degrees Celsius (4.9 to 5.2 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial times.

Copernicus records indicate that this northern autumn is the hottest fall on record, dating back to 1940. Meanwhile, scientific evidence, including ice cores, tree rings, and corals, suggests that the last decade is the warmest Earth has experienced in about 125,000 years.

The unprecedented streak of six consecutive hottest months is attributed to human-induced climate change from the burning of fossil fuels. The ongoing El Niño, a cyclical warming of the central Pacific, is intensifying this trend. Copernicus Deputy Director Samantha Burgess warns of the continued risk of catastrophic floods, fires, heatwaves, and droughts unless urgent action is taken to reduce dependence on fossil fuels.