Earth's Northern Hemisphere recorded its hottest summer ever in August

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has announced that the Northern Hemisphere experienced its hottest summer ever recorded, with August 2023 being the warmest month in history.

This follows July 2023, which was the second hottest month ever measured.

August's temperatures were approximately 1.5 degrees Celsius higher than pre-industrial averages, a threshold that global efforts are striving to avoid surpassing. However, scientists emphasise that long-term trends are more significant than monthly fluctuations.

The world's oceans, covering over 70% of the Earth's surface, also reached record-breaking temperatures, averaging nearly 21 degrees Celsius. This marks the third consecutive month of record-setting oceanic temperatures.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned, "The dog days of summer are not just barking, they are biting. Climate breakdown has begun." As of now, 2023 is the second hottest year on record, following 2016, according to the European climate service Copernicus.

Scientists attribute this escalating heat to human-induced climate change, exacerbated by natural phenomena such as El Nino, a temporary warming of parts of the Pacific Ocean that alters global weather patterns.

Andrew Weaver, a climatologist and professor at the University of Victoria in Canada, expressed concern about the lack of urgency from global leaders in addressing climate change. He urged them to take immediate action to prevent a catastrophic 3.0 C global warming.

Meanwhile, the Copernicus Climate Change Service Director, Carlo Buontempo, highlighted the persistence of these extreme conditions and their impacts on people and the planet as clear evidence of climate system warming.

In addition to air and ocean temperature records, Antarctica continues to set records for low amounts of sea ice. WMO's secretary-general, Petteri Taalas, noted that these alarming trends are occurring even before the full impact of the El Nino event, which typically intensifies in its second year.