Earth warming at record rate with no evidence of climate change accelerating, new study finds
A team of 57 scientists from around the world has found that the record-shattering heat levels experienced in 2023 were overwhelmingly caused by human activities, the Associate Press reported today.
The researchers, using United Nations-approved methods, determined that 92% of last year’s unprecedented heat surge was attributable to human-driven climate change.
The study, published in the journal Earth System Science Data, revealed that the rate of global warming hit an all-time high in 2023, reaching 0.26°C (0.47°F) per decade, up from 0.25°C (0.45°F) the previous year. This marks the highest warming rate on record.
While the rapid temperature rise is concerning, the researchers did not find evidence of a significant acceleration in human-caused climate change beyond the increased burning of fossil fuels. As lead author Piers Forster of the University of Leeds explained, “Things are increasing in temperature and getting worse in sort of exactly the way we predicted.”
The report also warned that Earth is likely to reach the 1.5°C (2.7°F) warming threshold, the internationally accepted threshold, in just 4.5 years if current emission trajectories continue. This would have severe consequences, including the potential loss of coral reefs, Arctic Sea ice, and various plant and animal species, as well as more extreme weather events.
Texas Tech climate scientist and chief scientist at the Nature Conservancy Katharine Hayhoe said “the future is in our hands. It’s us — not physics, but humans — who will determine how quickly the world warms and by how much.”
