Temperature records on our planet have been broken one after another over the past year, culminating last Sunday, where, according to preliminary data from the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Agency, we had the hottest day ever recorded globally.
The global average surface air temperature reached 17.09 degrees Celsius on Sunday – slightly above the previous record set last July of 17.08 degrees C. Heatwaves have hit large parts of the US, Europe and Russia over the past week.
Copernicus confirmed to Reuters that the average daily temperature, which had set a record last year, appeared to have been surpassed on Sunday in scientific records dating back to 1940.
Last year, four consecutive days set a record – from July 3 to 6 – when climate change fuelled by the burning of fossil fuels caused extreme heat in the Northern Hemisphere. Every month since June 2023 – 13 months in a row – has ranked as the planet’s hottest since records began, compared with the corresponding months in previous years, according to Copernicus.
Some scientists have predicted that 2024 could surpass 2023 as the hottest year since records began. Climate Change and the El Niño phenomenon – which ended in April – has raised the mercury even further this year.
Naftemporiki.gr with information from APE-MPE