The Warmest Recent 5 Years... 11,000 Deaths Due to Heatwaves

CO2 Concentration Up Over 18%
0.2°C Higher Than Previous 5 Years
Sea Level Rise and Arctic Sea Ice Decline

On September 17 (local time), firefighting aircraft are spraying fire retardants near residential areas to contain the large wildfire 'Bobcat Fire' spreading near Juniper Hills, California, USA.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] Global temperatures continue to rise, with the past five years recorded as the warmest in history.

According to the Global Climate Report (2015?2019) published on the 9th by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the average global temperature over the past five years was the warmest on record for any five-year period, 0.2 degrees higher than the previous five years.

As carbon dioxide emissions continue to increase, the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide has risen by more than 18% compared to the previous five years.

This trend is also evident in major climate indicators. Sea level rise is accelerating, Arctic sea ice extent is continuously shrinking, and Antarctic sea ice is rapidly decreasing, resulting in ongoing ice melt in glacial areas as well as the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets.

More heat is being trapped in the oceans, with ocean heat content down to a depth of 700 meters reaching record highs in 2019.

Worst Weather Disasters: Heatwaves... Wildfires from the Amazon Rainforest to the Arctic
Hurricane 'Harvey' Causes $125 Billion in Economic Damage

The worst meteorological disaster over the past five years was heatwaves. They occurred on every continent, with many countries setting new temperature records. Unprecedented wildfires broke out in Europe, North America, Australia, the Amazon rainforest, and even the Arctic region.

Most of the major damages caused by climate change are linked to extreme weather events. These can be short-lived, like tropical cyclones, or last for months to years, like droughts. In the summer of 2019, the Arctic experienced wildfires of unprecedented scale, with carbon dioxide emissions from fires reaching 50 Mt in June alone. No June during the period from 2010 to 2018 saw higher emissions from wildfires.

The greatest economic damage from natural disasters is caused by tropical cyclones such as typhoons and hurricanes. The Atlantic in 2017 was one of the worst years on record for hurricane damage, with Hurricane 'Harvey' estimated to have caused over $125 billion in economic losses.

Although average temperatures over the past five years were relatively higher, severe cold spells and heavy snowfall were also significant. Most occurred in North America, with Bariloche, Argentina, dropping to -25.4 degrees Celsius on July 16, 2017, which was 4.3 degrees lower than the previous record low.

According to data and analysis from the World Health Organization (WHO), the risk of illness or death due to heat has steadily increased since 1980. The WMO report states that heatwaves caused 11,000 deaths between 2015 and 2019.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.