July 2023 was Earth's hottest month on record by a wide margin, the European climate monitoring organisation said. Pics/Representative Images/File
Normally global temperature records are broken by hundredths or a tenth of a degree, so this margin is unusual
These records have dire consequences for both people and the planet exposed to ever more frequent and intense extreme events, said Copernicus deputy director Samantha Burgess
Days in July have been hotter than previously recorded from July 2 on. It's been so extra warm that Copernicus and the World Meteorological Organisation made the unusual early announcement that it was likely the hottest month days before it ended. Tuesday's calculations made it official
The month was 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than pre-industrial times. In 2015, the nations of the world agreed to try to prevent long-term warming not individual months or even years, but decades that is 1.5 degrees warmer than pre-industrial times. Last month was so hot, it was .7 degrees Celsius (1.3 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter than the average July from 1991 to 2020, Copernicus said
The worlds oceans were half a degree Celsius (0.9 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than the previous 30 years and the North Atlantic was 1.05 degrees Celsius (1.9 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter than average. Antarctica set record lows for sea ice, 15 per cent below average for this time of year
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