2024 Breaks Record as Hottest Year in 175 Years of Climate Data

• 2024 is confirmed as the hottest year since records began 175 years ago.
• Global temperatures neared 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels for the first time.
• Sea levels, ocean heat, and greenhouse gas levels hit record highs.

A new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), regarded as the world’s most authoritative source on climate data, reveals the planet is in a worsening climate crisis, having recorded its 10 hottest years in the past decade.

The WMO’s State of the Global Climate report highlights alarming milestones, including record levels of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide—the highest in 800,000 years. It confirms 2024 is on track to become the first year where global temperatures exceed 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, largely driven by greenhouse gas emissions and intensified by El Niño.

While this doesn’t mean the Paris Agreement limit has been permanently breached—the U.S. withdrew from the pact under President Donald Trump—scientists warn we are dangerously close.

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Other key findings include:

• 2023 was the hottest year ever recorded, surpassing the previous high in 2022.
• Global temperatures are now 1.34 to 1.41°C above the 1850–1900 average.
• Oceans, absorbing 90% of excess heat, are warming at twice the rate compared to 1950–2005, causing mass coral bleaching, intensified storms, and sea ice loss.
• Global sea levels have risen to a record high, accelerating from 2.1 mm/year (1993–2002) to 4.7 mm/year (2015–2024), threatening coastal communities with flooding and groundwater salinization.

The WMO also reports the largest glacier mass loss on record since 2021, with severe declines in Norway, Sweden, Svalbard, and the Andes. Climate disasters in 2024 displaced more people than any year since 2008, with tropical cyclones, heatwaves, floods, and droughts wreaking havoc globally.

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For instance, temperatures soared to 50°C (122°F) in Saudi Arabia during the Hajj pilgrimage, while wildfires and drought worsened food insecurity. At least eight countries saw over a million more people facing hunger compared to 2023.

Despite the rising toll, many vulnerable regions lack proper early-warning systems. WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo stressed, “Only half of all countries have adequate early-warning systems. This must change.”

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said limiting warming to 1.5°C is still possible—but only if world leaders act decisively.

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