According to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, the past 12 months clocked in at a scorching 1.52 degrees Celsius (2.74 degrees Fahrenheit) higher on average compared with between 1850 and 1900.
“This El Nino maximum is riding on top of a base climate that is continuously warming due to climate change,” Andrew Dessler, a climate scientist at Texas A&M University, said in an email. “The combination of them is what’s giving us such hot global temperatures.”
But does this mean that the world’s most famous climate goal is out of reach? Not … exactly.
Here’s what you need to know:
***Where did the 1.5 Celsius goal come from?***
In the 2016 Paris climate agreement, almost 200 nations agreed to keep the global average temperature from exceeding 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above preindustrial levels — and to “pursue efforts” to keep it below 1.5 degrees Celsius. The latter addition largely came from pressure from small-island states, who are at risk of disappearing under rising seas if temperatures get much higher.
Scientists have shown that holding the temperature rise to 1.5C could mean the survival of coral reefs, the preservation of Arctic sea ice and less deadly heat waves.
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It’s official: For the past 12 months, the Earth was [1.5 degrees Celsius higher](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/08/03/july-blows-away-temperature-records-testing-key-climate-threshold/?itid=lk_inline_manual_2) than in preindustrial times, scientists said Thursday, crossing a critical barrier into temperatures never experienced by human civilizations.
According to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, the past 12 months clocked in at a scorching 1.52 degrees Celsius (2.74 degrees Fahrenheit) higher on average compared with between 1850 and 1900.
At some level, that’s not surprising — the past 12 months have been scorching, as a warm [El Niño cycle](https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2024/02/08/la-nina-watch-el-nino-demise/?itid=lk_inline_manual_5) combined with the signal of [human-caused warming](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/02/07/michael-mann-climate-trial/?itid=lk_inline_manual_5) generated heat waves and extreme weather events around the globe.
“This El Nino maximum is riding on top of a base climate that is continuously warming due to climate change,” Andrew Dessler, a climate scientist at Texas A&M University, said in an email. “The combination of them is what’s giving us such hot global temperatures.”
But does this mean that the world’s most famous climate goal is out of reach? Not … exactly.
Here’s what you need to know:
***Where did the 1.5 Celsius goal come from?***
In the 2016 Paris climate agreement, almost 200 nations agreed to keep the global average temperature from exceeding 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above preindustrial levels — and to “pursue efforts” to keep it below 1.5 degrees Celsius. The latter addition largely came from pressure from small-island states, who are at risk of disappearing under rising seas if temperatures get much higher.
Scientists have shown that holding the temperature rise to 1.5C could mean the survival of coral reefs, the preservation of Arctic sea ice and less deadly heat waves.
Momentum has gathered around that more ambitious goal — even as carbon emissions continue to rise. Activists and environmentalists have chanted “1.5 to stay alive” and pointed out that [emissions will have to be cut dramatically](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/02/06/europe-climate-emissions-protests/?itid=lk_inline_manual_16) by 2030 to meet that target.
Read the full story here, and skip the paywall with email registration: [https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/02/08/1-5-celsius-global-warming-record/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/02/08/1-5-celsius-global-warming-record/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com)
Costal areas are about to be fucked when land snow and ice starts melting