The month of April 2024 extends the series of 11 consecutive months in which the highest temperatures compared to the same periods in previous years for which data exists were recorded, announced the European Union’s climate change monitoring service, cited by Reuters.
Since June 2023, every month has been the warmest on record compared to the same intervals in previous years, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service’s monthly bulletin.
Including April, the global average temperature was the highest ever recorded for a 12-month period – 1.61 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial 1850-1900 average.
These consecutive months of extreme weather, including record-setting sea surface temperatures, have prompted scientists to investigate whether human activity triggered these changes in the climate system.
“I think a lot of scientists have asked themselves if there has been a change in the climate system,” said Julien Nicolas, Copernicus’ principal climate researcher.
Greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels are the main cause of climate change.
In recent months, the El Nino phenomenon, which warms the surface waters of the eastern Pacific Ocean, has also increased temperatures. Scientists have already confirmed that climate change caused some specific extreme weather events in April, including a heat wave in the Sahel that killed hundreds.
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