The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has confirmed that 2024 was the hottest year ever recorded, with a global average temperature increase of 1.55 degrees Celsius (°C) above the pre-industrial average of 1850-1900. Similarly, January 2025 was the warmest ever recorded, with the global average temperature 1.75°C above pre-industrial levels.
The Copernicus Climate Change Monitoring Service reports that last January was the 18th out of the last 19 months to exceed the 1.5°C increase—the threshold set by the Paris Agreement for global warming above the pre-industrial levels.
The European Copernicus service highlights that not even the occurrence of La Niña — a cyclical natural weather phenomenon that cools the Pacific Ocean, counteracting the warming effects of El Niño — was not enough to prevent January from being the hottest month on record.
Global warming is also increasing in the ocean, with 2024 recording the highest sea surface temperatures and ocean heat content in the upper 2,000 metres ever observed. This conclusion comes from 54 scientists from seven countries and 31 institutes, who analysed a huge dataset and published in January the article "Record High Temperatures in the Ocean in 2024" in the magazine Advances in Atmospheric Science.
Glaciers are also suffering the effects of global warming, with an annual loss of 273 billion tonnes of ice since the beginning of the century. This is the finding of 61 scientists from 49 research centres in18 countries, who published the article "Community Estimate of Global Glacier Mass Changes from 2000 to 2023" in Nature this February.
On a global scale, European glaciers in the Alps and Pyrenees are melting the fastest. Since 2000, the loss of glacier ice has already contributed to an 18 millimetre rise in sea level.
The threat of glacier disappearance has prompted United Nations General Assembly to declare 2025 the International Year of Glacier Conservation. On 21 March, the world will celebrate the first World Glacier Day.
The climate crisis has worsened in 2024, which "means we have to fight even harder to get on the right track. The extreme temperatures of 2024 demand bold climate action in 2025. There is still time to avoid the worst of climate catastrophe. But world leaders must act now," said UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
Sources:
Record High Temperatures in the Ocean in 2024 | Advances in Atmospheric Sciences
Community estimate of global glacier mass changes from 2000 to 2023 | Nature
2025 International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation | International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation
