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Metropolis Desk-
Climate experts warn that despite months of record-breaking heat on land and sea, nations have failed to establish more ambitious goals, making the aim of limiting long-term global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) increasingly out of reach.
Average global surface air temperatures were more than 1.5C above pre-industrial levels for many days while envoys gathered in Bonn in early June to get ready for this year’s annual climate conference in November, according to the EU-funded Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S).
Although mean temperatures had previously briefly exceeded the 1.5C mark, this was the first instance of it occurring during the northern hemisphere summer, which begins on June 1. Also breaking records in April and May were sea temperatures.
Because change takes time, Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick, a climatologist at Australia’s University of New South Wales, declared, “We’ve run out of time.”
Extreme heatwaves have rocked the United States, while temperatures in Beijing, the capital of China, shattered June records as climate envoys from the two largest producers of greenhouse gases get ready to meet next month.
This month, temperatures in certain parts of North America were about 10 degrees Celsius above the seasonal average, while dangerous smog from forest fire smoke covered the US East Coast and Canada. Carbon emissions are thought to have reached a record high of 160 million metric tons.
Extreme heat has been recorded in Spain, Iran, and Vietnam, prompting concerns that the deadly summer of last year could become commonplace. Deaths have reportedly increased in India, one of the most climate-vulnerable nations, as a result of continuous high temperatures.
The World Meteorological Organization forecasted in May that there is now a 66 percent chance that the annual mean will breach the 1.5C threshold for at least one full year between now and 2027. Countries committed in Paris in 2015 to attempt to limit long-term average temperature hikes within 1.5C.
The sea has reached high temperatures that are comparable to those on land, with warming being accelerated by an El Nino event and other factors.
Late in March, the global average sea surface temperature reached 21C, and it stayed there throughout April and May, setting new records for the season. By October, sea temperatures in the Pacific and Indian oceans might be 3C warmer than average, according to Australia’s weather bureau.
The use of low-sulfur shipping fuels, El Nino, the drop in Saharan dust drifting across the ocean, and global warming are also contributing factors, according to Piers Forster, professor of climate physics at the University of Leeds.
Overall, he said, “Oceans are being hit by a quadruple whammy.” “It heralds better things to come.”
Numerous dead fish have been found washing up on Texas beaches, while sea lions and dolphins in California have also perished as a result of heat-induced algae blooms.
According to Georgia Institute of Technology meteorologist Annalisa Bracco, warmer waters may also result in less wind and rain, which would feed the cycle of increased heat.
The “perfect combination” of events led to this year’s high-water temperatures, but the ecological damage might last for some time, she warned.
The ocean will react very slowly since it accumulates heat gradually but also retains it for a very long time.
Source- Arab News
