2024 hottest on record, with August 1.51°C above pre-industrial level

Today’s Climate Bulletin from C3S, a component the European Union’s earth observation agency, showed that August 2024 was 1.51°C above the pre-industrial level and is the 13th month in a 14-month period for which the global-average surface air temperature exceeded this level. 

The global-average temperature for the past 12 months (September 2023 – August 2024) is the highest on record for any 12-month period. So far, in 2024, the global-average temperature difference is 0.70°C above the 1991-2020 average, which is the highest on record for this period and 0.23°C warmer than the same period in 2023. As such, the average difference for the remaining months of this year would need to drop by at least 0.30°C for 2024 not to be warmer than 2023. However, trends in the dataset make this highly unlikely to occur.  

Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of the C3S, said:  

"During the past three months of 2024, the globe has experienced the hottest June and August, the hottest day on record, and the hottest boreal summer on record. This string of record temperatures is increasing the likelihood of 2024 being the hottest year on record. The temperature-related extreme events witnessed this summer will only become more intense, with more devastating consequences for people and the planet unless we take urgent action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions."   

This news comes as the Fifth Global Conference on Strengthening Synergies between the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development takes place in Brazil, co-convened by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) and the UN Climate Change Secretariat (UNFCCC).  

Find out more from C3S here.