World Meteorological Organization: "Global Temperatures Hit Record Highs Over the Past 7 Years"

"Sea Level Rise Doubled Over the Past 8 Years"
UN Secretary-General: "COP26 Must Be a Turning Point in Tackling the Climate Crisis"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suhwan] The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a United Nations agency, announced that the Earth's temperature has reached record highs over the past seven years since observations began.

This has raised concerns that extreme abnormal weather, accompanied by intense heatwaves and devastating floods, has now become the climate's "new normal."

On the opening day of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), held in Glasgow, UK, on the 31st (local time), the WMO released the "State of the Climate in 2021" report.

The report covers overall climate indicators such as global temperature, extreme abnormal weather, sea level rise, and ocean conditions.

According to the report, the average temperature over the past 20 years since 2002 has risen by 1℃ compared to pre-industrial levels for the first time.

Furthermore, the Earth's temperature over the recent seven years from 2015 to this year is projected to reach record highs, influenced by greenhouse gases peaking during this period.

The report warns that this temperature rise is pushing the Earth we live on into an "unknown territory" with global impacts.

Based on data from the past nine months, the WMO also expects this year to be the fifth to seventh hottest year on record. The average temperature this year is projected to be about 1.09℃ higher than pre-industrial levels.

Petteri Taalas, Secretary-General of the WMO, pointed out, "Extreme abnormal weather has now become the 'new normal,' and scientific evidence is increasingly showing that some of this is due to human-induced climate change."

Secretary-General Taalas cited recent abnormal weather examples such as the record-breaking heatwave that swept across North America this summer, large-scale floods in Europe including Germany, and temperatures soaring to 54.4℃ in Death Valley, California, USA.

The report also identified global sea level rise as a serious concern alongside the increase in Earth's temperature.

Sea levels, measured by precise satellite-based systems since the early 1990s, rose by 2.1 mm annually from 1993 to 2002.

However, from 2013 to this year, the rise rate doubled to 4.4 mm annually compared to the previous decade. The main reason cited is the accelerated melting of glaciers and ice sheets.

Jonathan Bamber, Director of the Bristol Glaciology Centre, warned, "The current rate of sea level rise is faster than at any time in the past 2,000 years. If this continues, the rise could exceed 2 meters by 2100, displacing 630 million people worldwide."

Steven Belcher, Chief Scientist at the UK Met Office, said, "The fact that the average temperature over the past 20 years has risen more than 1℃ above pre-industrial levels will weigh heavily on the delegations at COP26, who aim to uphold the temperature limits agreed upon six years ago at the Paris Agreement."

In the Paris Agreement adopted in 2015, the international community set a goal to limit global warming to within 2℃ above pre-industrial levels, preferably below 1.5℃, to prevent catastrophic climate change.

Ant?nio Guterres, UN Secretary-General, emphasized, "The Earth is changing before our eyes, and COP26 must be a turning point for humanity and the planet."

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