The seven hottest years on record have been the past seven years. Last year was the Earth’s fifth warmest year ever, European scientists announced on Monday in a worrying new report. Even more worrying is the fact that the seven hottest years were the past seven, by an extremely clear margin.
The scientists said that the fact that 2021 did not break the record of the hottest year is not a reason to stop worrying about global warming and the climate crisis, especially when you actually review the data.
Both the U.S. and Europe had their hottest summers on record. It rained in the Arctic for the first time, and there were significant melting events across the Arctic. Extreme weather became a common feature of 2021, with natural disasters due to climate change wreaking havoc worldwide.
Hurricanes, floodings, wildfires, heatwaves, cyclones, extreme rainfall, crop failures, and droughts were among the extreme weather common to last year. 2021 made it clear that the world is already feeling the unprecedented effects of global warming and climate change that we are not prepared for.
The European Union program that conducted the analysis was Copernicus Climate Change Service, which made the report public on Monday. Its director, Carlo Buontempo, said 2021 was a stark reminder of the global need to change our ways and take clear steps towards a sustainable society.
We need to work toward reducing net carbon emissions, Buontempo said.
Last year the average temperature globally was 2 to 2.2 degrees Fahrenheit higher than it was before industrialization, which led to humans pumping out large amounts of carbon dioxide into the air. Experts have said that the 2 degrees warming is a “conservative” estimate because half of the last decade has absolutely been warmer than the first half.
2021 was the fifth warmest by a tiny margin compared to 2015 and 2018. The hottest years ever, in practically a tie, were 2016 and 2020.
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