'It doesn’t seem real': Earth’s record-shattering heat stuns scientists

06 July 2023

Just days after the "hottest day ever recorded," the major surge in temperatures "has unsettled even those scientists who have been tracking climate change," The New York Times reports.

According toThe Washington Post, "on Tuesday, the global average temperature peaked at a new all-time high of 17.18°C as regions worldwide—from Asia to Africa to the U.S. South—reeled from dangerous heatwaves."

Per the Times, Dr. Zeke Hausfather, a climate scientist at Berkeley Earth noted "the overall warming of the planet is 'well within the realm of what scientists had projected would happen' as humans continue to pump vast amounts of heat-trapping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere."

Still, scientists are stunned.

Bloombergreported earlier this week, "The heat this summer has already put millions of people around the world at risk."

Dr. Hausfather said, "A big reason we're seeing so many records shattered is that we're transitioning out of an unusually long three-year La Niña, which suppressed temperatures, and into a strong El Niño," which the Times notes "likely portends that even more heat is coming."

Furthermore, according to the Times, "The current El Niño is just getting underway and many researchers don’t expect it to peak until December or January, with global temperatures seeing another surge in the months thereafter. That means that next year could be even hotter than this year, scientists said."

Gabriel Vecchi, a Princeton climate scientist, added, "There does seem to be this unusual convergence of warming factors right — however — "this is all happening in a world where we've been increasing greenhouse gases for the past 150 years, and that really loads the dice and makes it much more likely that we're going to get pushed into record-breaking territory."

Senior research scientist at the University of Miami, Brian McNoldy, emphasized, "It’s so far out of line of what's been observed that it’s hard to wrap your head around. It doesn't seem real."

The New York Times' full report is available at this link (subscription required).

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