Climate experts have been warning since the start of this year that 2024 is likely to set records for high temperatures. Now, with ten months having passed, the Copernicus Climate Change Service has confirmed that it is now “virtually certain.”

This year is expected to be the first complete year where global average temperatures will have exceeded 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 Celsius) above pre-industrial levels, according to Samantha Burgess, the deputy director of the Climate Change Service. This figure is a threshold that world leaders and scientists aimed to remain under to combat further temperature increases.

Burgess remarked, “This signifies a significant new record in global temperatures and should inspire increased efforts ahead of the upcoming COP29 Climate Change Conference,” which begins on Monday in Azerbaijan.

The previous record for the hottest year was held by last year.

Temperature Trends in the US for October

The average temperature recorded in the U.S. for October was 59 degrees, nearly 5 degrees higher than the average for the 20^th century, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). This makes it the second warmest October over the last 130 years, following 1963.

NOAA also reported that October was the hottest month ever recorded in Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Utah. Additionally, it ranked as the second warmest October in California, Colorado, Montana, and Wyoming, and was among the top 10 warmest in another 10 states.

Furthermore, it tied with October 1963 to be the second driest October recorded. This significantly contributed to wildfires in regions like California and even a fire outbreak in Brooklyn. The only month to have witnessed less rain was October 1952.

In states like Delaware and New Jersey, October recorded the driest conditions on record according to NOAA.

At least eleven states have experienced their warmest annual temperatures thus far, including Maine, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin, as per NOAA statistics.

Nationally, average temperature measurements this year are currently the second highest on record.

Global Temperature Overview for October

October has now become the fifteenth month in a 16-month span where the temperature stayed at least 2.7 degrees above pre-industrial levels (1850-1900).

The climate service indicated that for this year not to set a new temperature record, the average temperatures in the last two months would have to be nearly on par with those from the pre-industrial era.

The global average temperature over the past year has not only exceeded pre-industrial levels but is also 1.3 degrees higher than the average recorded between 1991-2020.

The Copernicus results stem from advanced computer analyses along with extensive data collected from satellites, ships, aircraft, and weather stations worldwide.