Global temperatures eased slightly in July, bringing an end to a 13-month streak of heat records as the El Nino weather system ebbs.
However, scientists at the European climate agency, Copernicus, say this is no cause for celebration.
At an average of 16.91 degrees Celsius, it was still the second hottest month on record after July last year.
“Even if we are slightly below what we were a year ago, the global temperature is still at near record levels. So, the global picture is not that much different from where we were a year ago,” said Julien Nicolas, a Copernicus climate scientist.
Other records were set in July, including the two hottest days on record, each averaging about 17.16 degrees Celsius.
“So July was also a record month in its own way, even if the average over the whole month is slightly below that of July 2023,” he said.
El Nino, which naturally warms the Pacific Ocean and changes global weather, spurred the streak of record heat.
“The global sea surface temperature has been at record or near record levels for the past, more than a year now, has been an important contributing factor,” said Nicolas.
Human-caused climate change is driving extreme weather events that are wreaking havoc around the globe, with several examples just in recent weeks.
In Cape Town, South Africa, thousands were displaced by torrential rain, gale-force winds, and flooding. A fatal landslide hit Indonesia’s Sulawesi island. While Japanese authorities said more than 120 people died in record heat in Tokyo.
Nicolas warned that the consequences of global warming, which have been seen for many years, will not end because this streak of records is ending.
