Climate change crisis: 2023 on track to become warmest year on record

The Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), working on behalf of the European Commission and funded by the European Union, has issued a dire warning about the state of our planet's climate. September 2023, according to C3S, was the warmest September on record globally, and it comes with a cascade of alarming findings that underscore the urgency of addressing climate change.

Scientists have just announced that Earth has experienced its hottest September on record – both by land and sea – continuing an ominous streak of record-breaking temperatures and putting 2023 on track to become the warmest year on record.

Record-Breaking Temperatures

September 2023 saw the average global surface air temperature reach a staggering 16.38°C, surpassing the previous record set in 2020 by 0.5°C. Notably, this makes September 2023 the most anomalous warm month in the ERA5 dataset, dating back to 1940. The month was approximately 1.75°C warmer than the September average for 1850-1900, the preindustrial reference period.

Furthermore, the global temperature for the first nine months of 2023 was 0.52°C higher than average, surpassing the warmest calendar year, 2016, by 0.05°C. The cumulative effect of this warming is stark, with the global mean temperature for 2023 to date being 1.40°C higher than the preindustrial average (1850-1900).

For Europe, September 2023 was the warmest September on record, with temperatures soaring to 2.51°C higher than the 1991-2020 average, a significant 1.1°C warmer than the previous record holder in 2020.

Rising Sea Surface Temperatures

Simultaneously, the Copernicus Climate Change Service reported a surge in sea surface temperatures in September. The average sea surface temperature over the region between 60°S–60°N reached a record high of 20.92°C for September, making it the second-highest temperature across all months, just behind August 2023.

El Niño conditions in the equatorial eastern Pacific Ocean continued to develop during this period, contributing to the rising temperatures. This climatic phenomenon, characterized by the periodic warming of sea surface temperatures, has far-reaching effects on weather patterns worldwide.

The impact of climate change was also evident in the polar regions. Antarctic sea ice extent remained at a record low for this time of year, with both daily and monthly extents reaching their lowest annual maxima in the satellite record. The monthly extent was 9% below the average. In the Arctic, daily sea ice extent ranked as the 6th lowest annual minimum, and the monthly sea ice extent came in as the 5th lowest, 18% below average.

Hydrological Extremes

In addition to experiencing soaring temperatures and melting ice, September 2023 also witnessed hydrological extremes. Observations showed wetter-than-average conditions along several parts of the western seaboard of Europe.

This included the western Iberian Peninsula, Ireland, northern Britain, and Scandinavia. An extreme rainfall, associated with a storm named Daniel, amplified this precipitation, causing severe flooding in Libya.

Southern Brazil and southern Chile also experienced extreme precipitation events. However, all regions did not receive blessings of moisture. Records showed drier-than-average conditions in parts of Europe, the southeastern USA, Mexico, central Asia, and Australia. In Australia, they documented the driest September on record, which raised concerns about water scarcity and its ecological impact.

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