Red alert issued by global weather experts over catastrophic rate of climate change

A red alert at the sheer pace of climate change in a single generation -” turbo-charged by ever-increasing greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere" - has been issued by the (WMO).

The report was issued on the first day of the Climate Change Conference, COP29, in Baku, .

It said 2015-2024 will be the warmest ten years on record with the loss of ice from glaciers, sea-level rises and ocean heating acceleration, while extreme , like Spain’s recent floods and hurricanes that battered the USA, is wreaking havoc on communities and economies across the .

“Climate catastrophe is hammering health, widening inequalities, harming sustainable development, and rocking the foundations of peace. The vulnerable are hardest hit,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres.

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According to the WMO’s date the global mean temperature in 2024 is on track to outstrip the temperature even of 2023, the current warmest year. It also warns how last year that greenhouse gases reached record levels with Carbon dioxide (CO2) increasing by 51%. This traps heat in the atmosphere and causes temperatures to rise.

Ocean temperature increases were also the highest on record in 2023 and preliminary data shows this year has continued at comparable levels. Ocean warming rates show a particularly strong increase in the past two decades. From 2005 to 2023, the ocean absorbed on average approximately 3.1 million terawatt-hours (TWh) of heat each year. This is more than 18 times the world’s energy consumption in 2023.

About 90% of the energy that has accumulated in the Earth system is stored in the ocean and experts warn it is expected that ocean warming will continue – a change that is irreversible.

The report also details how this in turn has accelerated sea level rises at a rate of 4.77 mm per year, more than double the rate between 1993 and 2002. - melting glaciers and ice sheets. In 2023, glaciers lost a record 1.2-meter water equivalent of ice – about five times the amount of water in the Dead Sea. It was the largest loss since measurements began in 1953 and was due to extreme melting in North America and Europe. In Switzerland, glaciers lost about 10% of their remaining volume in 2021/2022 and 2022/2023.

Most starkly the report also warns that extreme weather will worsen food insecurity and exacerbate displacement and migration. So far this year dangerous heat has afflicted many millions of people throughout the world through heavy precipitation, floods and tropical cyclones led to massive loss of life and damage.

“It is essential to recognize that every fraction of a degree of warming matters. Whether it is at a level below or above 1.5°C of warming, every additional increment of global warming increases climate extremes, impacts and risks,” said Celeste Saulo, WMO Secretary-General.

She added: “The record-breaking rainfall and flooding, rapidly intensifying tropical cyclones, deadly heat, relentless drought and raging wildfires that we have seen in different parts of the world this year are unfortunately our new reality and a foretaste of our future.

“We urgently need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and strengthen our monitoring and understanding of our changing climate. We need to step up support for climate change adaptation through climate information services and Early Warnings for All.”