WASHINGTON D.C., DC — Climate scientists say Earth has obliterated global heat records for the ninth straight month after February clocked up the hottest temperature ever recorded.
Spring hasn't sprung, but temperatures worldwide have bounced to their highest levels ever. "February 2024 was the warmest February on record globally," says Carlo Buontempo, Director of Copernicus Climate Change Service.
Climate scientists say that marks a heat streak for nine consecutive months. "We have seen over the past few decades a piling up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere which bring up the temperature of the entire planet," says Buontempo.
New data from Copernicus, the European Union's climate change monitoring service, shows temperatures last month were exceptionally high in both the air and sea. The world's oceans, which absorb 90 percent of earth's heat, saw the warmest temps ever, while sea ice keeps shrinking to record lows.
Climate scientist Ella Gilbert says, "Every fraction of a degree means a tangible impact on ecosystems - it means a tangible impact on people's lives and their livelihoods, and we are going to see more extreme events."
The US has already seen its share of wild weather this year, with a monster blizzard engulfing California, and the largest wildfire in state history raging through Texas.
Global temperatures are getting an extra boost from El Nino, but experts say heat-trapping greenhouse gases are the main culprit. "We have to reduce the rate of temperature rise to protect ourselves from these kinds of damaging impacts," says Gilbert.
Scientists say with climate change steering the world into uncharted territory...cutting harmful emissions is the only safe path for the planet.
Countries at UN climate negotiations in Dubai last year agreed to "transition away" from fossil fuels....but didn't give specifics. Governments are now under pressure to strengthen their climate commitments in the short term and for beyond 2030.