15th January 2025 – (Los Angeles) Earth’s average surface temperature in 2024 has been confirmed as the warmest on record, based on an analysis led by NASA scientists. Global temperatures for the year were measured at 1.28 degrees Celsius above the agency’s 20th-century baseline (1951-1980). This new record follows an unprecedented heat streak, with 15 consecutive months from June 2023 to August 2024 setting monthly temperature records.
NASA scientists estimate that 2024 was approximately 1.47 degrees Celsius warmer than the mid-19th century average (1850-1900). For over half of the year, average temperatures exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius above the baseline, and the annual average may have surpassed this threshold for the first time, although with some mathematical uncertainties.
“Once again, the temperature record has been shattered—2024 was the hottest year since record-keeping began in 1880,” stated NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. He emphasised the urgency of understanding our changing planet, particularly in the context of record-breaking temperatures and the wildfires currently threatening California.
The warming trend observed in recent decades has been largely attributed to the accumulation of heat-trapping greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide and methane. In 2022 and 2023, Earth experienced record increases in carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels, as indicated by a recent international analysis. The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has risen dramatically from approximately 278 parts per million in the pre-industrial 18th century to about 420 parts per million today.
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