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September's 'bananas' record highs stun climate scientists
The Guardian Weekly
|October 13, 2023
Global temperatures soared to a new record in September by a huge margin, stunning scientists. The hottest September on record follows the hottest August and July, with the latter being the hottest month ever recorded. The high temperatures have driven heat waves and wildfires across the world.
September 2023 beat the previous record for that month by 0.5C, the largest jump in temperature ever seen. September was about 1.8C warmer than pre-industrial levels. Datasets from European and Japanese scientists confirm the leap.
The heat is the result of the continuing high levels of carbon dioxide emissions combined with a rapid flip of the planet's biggest natural climate phenomenon, El Niño. The previous three years saw La Niña conditions in the Pacific Ocean, which lowers global temperature by a few tenths of a degree as more heat is stored in the ocean.
This story is from the October 13, 2023 edition of The Guardian Weekly.
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