Scientists have been warning for months that 2023 could be record-breakingly hot as climate change warms the atmosphere.
The planet’s average temperature on Wednesday equaled the unofficial record set the previous day, the latest somber milestone in a week of extreme events fueled by climate change.
According to Climate Reanalyzer, a University of Maine tool that uses satellite data and computer simulations to measure the state of the planet, the global average was 17.18 degrees Celsius (62.9 degrees Fahrenheit). This equaled the previous day’s record after the previous mark was broken on Monday with a temperature of 17.01 degrees Celsius (62.6 Fahrenheit).
While the data isn’t official government records, “it gives us a clue as to where we are right now,” said Sarah Kapnick, senior scientist at the National Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). . The US agency said it would take them into account when calculating official records.
Scientists often use much longer measurements—months, years, decades—to track global warming. But the daily highs are an indication that climate change is breaking new ground.
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Despite being colder than usual in some countries, Quebec and Peru surpassed their high temperature records this week.
In North Grenville, Ontario, the city turned ice hockey rinks into chilling centers as temperatures hit 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius) and humidity reached a wind chill of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) on Wednesday.
“I feel like we live in a tropical country,” said city spokeswoman Jill Sturdy. “It’s like it hit you. The air is very dense.
Beijing recorded nine straight days when thermometers topped 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) and ordered a halt to all outdoor activities on Wednesday as temperatures hit 41 degrees (106 F).
As of Wednesday, 38 million Americans were on some form of heat alert, Kapnick said.
Scientists have been warning of this for months 2023 could see record heat while climate change, largely caused by the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas and oil, is warming the atmosphere.
In addition, they pointed out that La Niña, the natural cooling of the oceans, has acted to counterbalance this warming soft El Nino, the reverse phenomenon, characterized by the rise in temperature of the oceans.
“A record like this is further evidence of the now-massively supported thesis that global warming is pushing us into a hotter future,” said Chris Field, a Stanford University climate scientist who was not involved in the calculations.
Also Read: World Breaks Temperature Records in 2023; Deaths in the US bear witness to this
One of the main factors behind this week’s situation is the exceptionally mild winter in Antarctica, according to data from Climate Reanalyzer. Some parts of the continent and the nearby sea recorded temperatures between 10 and 20 degrees Celsius (18 and 36 Fahrenheit) above averages for the 1979-2000 period.
“Temperatures in the ocean, and particularly around Antarctica, have been unusual this week as wind fronts in the Southern Ocean push warm air further south,” said Raghu Murtugudde, professor of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Maryland and a visiting professor at Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay.
Chari Vijayaraghavan, a polar explorer and educator who has regularly visited the Arctic and Antarctic over the past decade, said global warming is evident at both poles and is threatening wildlife in the region, as well as melting ice that is raising sea levels.
“Global warming “Could increase the risk of diseases like bird flu spreading in Antarctica, which would have devastating consequences for penguins and other wildlife in the region,” Vijayaraghavan said.
Sean Birkle, a climatologist at the University of Maine and inventor of the Climate Reanalyzer, explained that the daily numbers aren’t official, but offer a useful portrait of what’s happening in an increasingly warming world.
Although the data set used to determine the unofficial record only goes back to 1979, Kapnick said given other data, it’s likely that the planet is recording its hottest day “in the several hundred years we’ve known.” . .
Increasingly frequent and intense heat waves are disrupting life around the world, leading to dangerous temperatures.
The director of the World Health Organization in Europe, Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge said climate change was attacking the continent “on a large scale,” which could set back public health advances in the region by 50 years.
In June, large parts of India and Pakistan were hit by a multi-day heat wave that killed more than 100 people in both countries. Temperatures eased this week as the monsoon season began.
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