Climate Central, a nonprofit science research group, released its latest report stating that the last 12 months on Earth, from November 2022 to October 2023, were the hottest that has ever been recorded. The global average temperature during this period was 1.3 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial era, which is dangerously close to the limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius set by the Paris Agreement.
“This 12-month record is exactly what we expect from a global climate fueled by carbon pollution,” Dr Andrew Pershing, vice president of science at Climate Central, said in a statement on Thursday, Nov. 9.
According to him, this record-breaking temperature will likely be broken again next year, especially with the growing El Niño which will expose billions of people to unprecedented heat.
“While climate impacts are most acute in developing countries near the equator, seeing climate-fueled streaks of extreme heat in the US, India, Japan, and Europe underscores that no one is safe from climate change,” he remarked.
Prof. Edvin Aldrian, a researcher from the Indonesian Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) and author of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, expressed his concern that the average global temperature hike reaching 1.3 degrees Celsius would lead to a rise of 1.5 degrees Celsius sooner than expected by 2030.
“While there are natural factors such as the El Niño phenomenon or the position of the sun as it approaches the Earth, it is human activities that have the greatest impact on this increase in global temperature,” Edvin said.
Climate Central also analyzed 14 cities in Indonesia, with nine cities experiencing extreme heat streaks. Jakarta and Tangerang had the second-longest streak of extreme heat, lasting 17 days, which was tied with New Orleans in the United States. Meanwhile, Houston, the US topped the rankings for experiencing extreme heat for 22 days.
Source: Tempo.co
