With temperatures 0.93C
above the average for the same month between 1991 and 2020, September 2023 was
the warmest September worldwide. In September 2020, the average surface
temperature rose by 0.5°C to 16.38°C, breaking the previous record.
The hottest land and sea
temperature
According to the WMO (World
Meteorological Organization), this is the latest in a long line of unusual land
and sea surface temperatures and is a warning about how quickly greenhouse
gases (GHG) are altering the climate.
"The variations in
temperature are huge, much larger than anything we have previously observed.
According to agency Secretary-General Petteri Taalas, the season's Antarctic
winter sea ice extent was the smallest on record.
We can anticipate these
record-breaking temperatures to persist for months with cascading effects on
our environment and society because the warming El Nio phenomenon is still
unfolding, he continued.
India's recent weather
conditions El Nino's effects on India's monsoon season are represented by some
places receiving more rain than usual and others drying out completely.
‘dubious honour’
Climate change's combined
effects with this year's advent of the El Nino weather pattern, which warms the
surface waters in the eastern and central Pacific Ocean, are to blame for the
rise in world temperatures.
Copernicus' deputy director,
Samantha Burgess, voiced considerable worry over these startling numbers.
According to her, 2023 is now in first place and is expected to be the warmest
year ever, with temperatures about 1.4 degrees Celsius over preindustrial
levels.
"The sense of
urgency for ambitious climate action has never been more critical," she
continued, noting that the COP28 UN climate change summit will be held in Dubai
the following month.
The planet was 1.2C
warmer than pre-industrial times in 2018, despite the fact that it did not
break any records. The previous record was shared by the years 2016 and 2020,
when temperatures were 1.25 degrees C higher on average.
Sea surface temperatures
have also risen to dangerous levels in addition to land temperatures. In
September, the average sea surface temperature over the 60°S–60°N latitudes
rose to 20.92°C, the highest reading for the month ever and the second-highest
monthly average ever, trailing only August 2023.
Additionally, the Arctic
Sea ice extent is 18% below average while the Antarctic sea ice extent is still
at a record low level for the time of year. These conclusions, which highlight
the global scope of the problem, are based on billions of observations from
satellites, ships, aircraft, and weather stations.
Source: https://news.un.org