May 2024 set the record for the highest average global temperature, the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) reported on Wednesday.
It was also the twelfth consecutive month of record-breaking global average temperatures, with the barometre soaring to 0.65°C above the 1991-2020 average.
The average global temperature between June 2023 and May 2024 was the highest ever recorded: it landed 0.75°C above the 1991-2020 average and 1.63°C above the average for the pre-industrial period (1850-1900).
Copernicus confirmed this 12-month trend just as the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and the UK’s Met Office released their annual and decadal climate prediction updates. The report, summarising forecasts for 2024-2028, predicts that at least one of the next five years will likely surpass 2023’s hottest-ever record.
“It is shocking, but not surprising, that we have reached this 12-month period,” C3S director Carlo Buontempo commented. Despite the break this series will eventually have, he argues, climate change's footprint remains unabated, with no sign of the trend reversing.
“We are living in unprecedented times, but we also have unprecedented monitoring abilities that can help us take informed actions,” he added.
May 2024 was also 11th warmest month ever, with temperatures 1.52°C above the average for 1850-1900.
A more comprehensive analysis of key climate indicators will be published on 6 June in the C3S monthly climate bulletin.
