As the El Nino cycle fades, the streak of global temperature records comes to an end.
But don’t be fooled. We have taken yet another step-change in global temperatures, from which we cannot back down without a drawdown of heat trapping gases.
Zeke Hausfather in the Climate Brink:
Global surface temperatures have been on a tear since June 2023, shattering prior records by hereto unforeseen margins (0.3C to 0.5C above prior monthly records) in the latter half of 2023 and more modestly (0.1C to 0.2C) so far in 2024. All in all, we saw 13 new records set from June 2023 to June 2024, the second longest streak of new monthly records in the modern era (after the super El Nino event of 2016/2017).
However, the remarkable extent of the records set in summer 2023 set the bar was so high that it is becoming increasingly difficult for 2024 to set new records – particularly as El Nino conditions fade and the world potentially moves toward La Nina.1
With 30 of the 31 days now available from the Copernicus/ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis dataset, we can say with certainty that July 2024 ended up with cooler monthly global temperatures than July 2023, by a small margin (~0.05C). see graph at top of page.
It’s pretty depression that there are so many denialists out there that we have to apologize for metrics that don’t break records.
I really would like an edti fucntion.
Deniers are morons. As has been said, “you can’t fix stupid”.