2023 was Earth’s hottest year, experts say

The Earth had its hottest year on record in 2023, according to preliminary data from the US government and other climate research bodies.

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has said that it is “all but certain” that 2023 will indeed rank as the warmest year in 174 years, blaming ongoing climate crisis caused by humanity’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Overall, a higher concentration of CO₂ and other climate gases in the Earth’s atmosphere has led to rising average global temperatures, scientific consensus has found.

Data shows that the months of June through November 2023 have been the hottest of their kinds since records started in 1850 – with July 2023 qualifying as the hottest of them all.

The heat last year exacerbated natural disasters around the world. In Libya, thousands of people were killed after flooding triggered the collapse of two dams, and other flash floods cost lives in Brazil, China, and the US. Meanwhile, wildfires exploded across Greece, Italy, Croatia, Algeria, and Canada.