2023 on Track to Become the Hottest Year on Record

The European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service stated today that this year is on track to become the hottest year ever recorded, with the global average temperature thus far in 2023 being 0.52 degrees Celsius higher than the average. The service explained that the global temperature from January to September is 1.4 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial average (from 1850 to 1900). Last month was the hottest ever recorded globally, with temperatures 0.93 degrees Celsius higher than the average for the same month in the period from 1991 to 2020. Scientists indicate that climate change, coupled with the El Niño weather phenomenon this year—which warms the surface waters in the eastern and central Pacific Ocean—has contributed to the recent increases in temperatures to record levels.