The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has confirmed that 2023 was the hottest year on record by a clear margin, with global temperatures near the surface 1.45C higher than in the late 1800s. The UN weather agency issued a 'red alert,' warning that the world has never been closer to breaching the 1.5C global heating limit, even if only temporarily.
Records were broken or smashed for greenhouse gas pollution, surface temperatures, ocean heat and acidification, sea level rise, Antarctic sea ice cover, and glacier retreat. The report noted that the error margin of 0.12C means the Earth may have already heated 1.5C, but scientists measure global heating over a 30-year average, so this does not signify a breach of the Paris Agreement goal.
Violent weather extremes, particularly heat, were documented on every inhabited continent, with rapid attribution studies showing climate change made some events stronger or more likely. Marine heatwaves affected one third of the world’s ocean on an average day in 2023, with only 10% of the ocean escaping heatwave conditions by year's end.
Climate scientists expressed concern about the accelerating crisis, with Friederike Otto of Imperial College London stating that continued fossil fuel burning will make life more dangerous and expensive. However, the WMO found a 'glimmer of hope' in renewable energy growth, with capacity added in 2023 almost 50% higher than the previous year.
The report also highlighted that extreme weather worsened food insecurity, with 333 million people acutely food insecure in 2023, more than double the 2019 figure, concentrated in Africa and south Asia. Scientists warned that the uneven impact of climate change is already being felt, with the global south disproportionately affected.
