A new record beaten at more than 17.01°C average. Monday was the hottest day ever measured globally, according to initial measurements Tuesday, July 4 from an agency dependent on the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

This measurement exceeds the previous daily record (16.92°C) set on July 24, 2022, according to data from NOAA's National Environmental Prediction Centers, which dates back to 1979.

The air temperature, which fluctuates between about 12°C and 17°C daily average during the year, averaged 16.20°C at the beginning of July between 1979 and 2000.

This record, which has yet to be corroborated by other measurements, could be quickly broken as the Northern Hemisphere begins the summer season and the average global temperature generally continues to rise until late July-early August.

Towards 1.5°C increase

Already at the beginning of June, global average temperatures were the warmest ever recorded for this period by the European Copernicus service, breaking previous records by a "substantial margin".

These observations are a likely foretaste of the El Nino phenomenon – generally associated with rising global temperatures – coupled with the effects of human-induced global warming.

On June 8, NOAA announced the official arrival of El Nino, saying it "could lead to new temperature records" in some areas.

In June, several records were broken in Asia and the UK experienced its hottest June on record while Mexico was going through an extreme heat wave.

According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO, a specialized agency of the UN), there is a 66% probability that the annual average global temperature near the surface will temporarily exceed pre-industrial levels by more than 1.5°C for at least one year between 2023 and 2027.

The year 2022 was the eighth consecutive year in which global annual temperatures were at least 1 degree higher than levels observed between 1850 and 1900.

With AFP

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