The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
2017 on track to be one of hottest years on record
climate: Higher temperatures amid ‘extraordinary weather’, says UN agency
This year is expected to be one of the hottest on record, with temperatures more than 1C above pre-industrial levels, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has said.
While 2017 is not on track to outstrip the record heat of 2016, it is expected to be the second or third warmest year recorded – and the hottest without the influence of an “El Nino” natural weather pattern which pushes up global temperatures.
High temperatures have been accompanied by “extraordinary weather” from record-breaking hurricanes to heatwaves, flooding and drought, many of which bear the tell-tale sign of climate change caused by human activity, the WMO said.
In an announcement as annual UN climate change talks hosted by Fiji begin in Bonn, Germany, the WMO said the average global temperature from January to September 2017 was 1.1C above the pre-industrial era.
As a result of a powerful El Nino, 2016 is likely to remain the hottest year on record, but 2017 is expected to join 2015 as the second or third hottest year.
The years 2013 to 2017 are likely to be the hottest five-year period on record.
Parts of southern Europe, including Italy, North Africa, parts of eastern and southern Africa and the Asian part of Russia experienced record warm conditions.
Other indicators of rising temperatures include Arctic sea ice, which was well below average throughout 2017 and was at record low levels for the first four months of the year, while sea ice cover in Antarctica also hit record lows.
Globally, sea surface temperatures in 2017 are on track to be among the three highest on record, with some significant coral “bleaching” caused by over-warm oceans, including on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.
Major, high-impact hurricanes battered the US, with Harvey in August, followed by Irma and Maria in September.