Brussels: With all of July's scorching data in, the European agency for climate monitoring declared it conclusively: July 2023 was by far the hottest month on record for Earth. According to the Copernicus Climate Change Service, a branch of the European Union's space project, July's worldwide average temperature of 16.95°C was 0.3°C higher than the previous record set in 2019. Normally global temperature records are broken by hundredths or a tenth of a degree, so this margin is unusual.
“These records have dire consequences for both people and the planet exposed to ever more frequent and intense extreme events,” said Copernicus deputy director Samantha Burgess. There have been deadly heat waves in the Southwestern US and Mexico, Europe and Asia. Scientific studies put the blame on human-caused climate change from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas.
From July 2 onwards, days have been warmer than previously seen. Copernicus and the World Meteorological Organisation announced unusually early that it was likely the hottest month just days before it concluded due to the unusually warm weather. In comparison to preindustrial periods, the month was 1.5°C warmer. Last month was so hot, it was .7°C hotter than the average July from 1991 to 2020, Copernicus said. The world's oceans were half a degree celsius warmer than the previous 30 years and the North Atlantic was 1.05°C hotter than average. Antarctica set record lows for sea ice, 15% below average for this time of year. Copernicus’ records go back to 1940.