Global temperatures reached a new record in 2023, smashing the previous record by 0.17 degrees, new figures have confirmed.
The global average temperature in 2023 was 14.98°C, making it the hottest year since records were first kept in 1850, according to figures from the Copernicus Climate Change Service. The new record was also 0.17°C hotter than the previous hottest year, 2016.
Climate experts have warned that these figures are significant and show the impact of climate change on the world, and renewed calls for nations to do more to mitigate the effects of it.
Copernicus also reported that 2023 was 0.60°C warmer than the 1991-2020 average and 1.48°C warmer than the 1850-1900 pre-industrial level. The organisation added that it is likely that a 12-month period ending in January or February 2024 will exceed 1.5°C above the pre-industrial level – the benchmark figure that nations are trying to limit the warning of the globe to.
In addition, 2023 marks the first time on record that every day within a year has exceeded 1°C above the 1850-1900 pre-industrial level. Also, close to 50% of days were more than 1.5°C warmer than the 1850-1900 level, and two days in November were, for the first time, more than 2°C warmer, Copernicus reported.
Annual average air temperatures were the warmest on record, or close to the warmest, over sizeable parts of all ocean basins and all continents except Australia. Meanwhile, each month from June to December in 2023 was warmer than the corresponding month in any previous year.
“The annual data presented here provides yet more evidence of the increasing impacts of climate change,” said Mauro Facchini, Head of Earth Observation at the Directorate General for Defence Industry and Space, European Commission. “The European Union, in line with the best available science, has agreed on an emission reduction of 55% by 2030 – now just six years away. The challenge is clear. The Copernicus Programme, managed by the European Commission, is one the best tools available to guide our climate actions, keep us on track with the goals of the Paris Agreement and accelerate the green transition.”
Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service, added: “2023 was an exceptional year with climate records tumbling like dominoes. Temperatures during 2023 likely exceed those of any period in at least the last 100,000 years.”
Carlo Buontempo, Director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service, comments: “The extremes we have observed over the last few months provide a dramatic testimony of how far we now are from the climate in which our civilisation developed. This has profound consequences for the Paris Agreement and all human endeavours. If we want to successfully manage our climate risk portfolio, we need to urgently decarbonise our economy whilst using climate data and knowledge to prepare for the future.”
