Global temperatures in the 20th century averaged 58.6 degrees FahrenheitScientists have kept records of global temperatures since the 1880s, and this May has tied the two hottest months of May on record (1998 and 2005). Many areas of the world, including parts of Siberia and Russia, parts of Australia and north and east Europe experienced higher than usual temperatures, according to NOAA.
Global temperatures in the 20th century averaged 58.6 degrees Fahrenheit. May’s record this year was 59.79 degrees Fahrenheit, the 339th consecutive month with a temperature above the 20th century average, suggesting a slow warming of the Earth’s atmosphere.
In addition, the northern hemisphere’s snow cover for the month was one of the lowest on record in both North America and Europe. Arctic sea ice was down, but Antarctic sea ice showed evidence of growth, indicating that certain regions of the Earth might be impacted by rising temperatures differently than others.
According to the AFP, world leaders are debating a measure that would lock the top nations into an agreement limiting greenhouse gas emissions, one of the biggest drivers of climate change. The goal is to limit global warming to 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial levels. By doing so, scientists hope to avoid the worst of global warming’s potential effects: severe droughts, floods and sea-level rise.
It is time to stop arguing and start making changes, the president of the World Bank said at an event in London last Wednesday. The World Bank has estimated that the global temperature has risen 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit since the Industrial Revolution and continues to approach the threshold that will create broader climate change, Reuters explains.
Estimates of how quickly the temperature will continue to rise vary, but scientists agree that if temperatures continue to rise we will see a greater impact than just a warm summer month. In a report released Wednesday, the World Bank cited Bangkok as an example of a city that could be widely impacted by flooding if the sea levels continue to rise. Venice would be another example, a city created around water that continues to rise.
While the world agreement to limiting temperatures is a good step, we should be doing more right now, Jim Yong Kim said. Different countries around the world should step up and create individualized plans. Plans to curb climate change failed at a recent U.N. conference because of economic concerns, something the movement will have to continue combating in the days to come.
Source: Google news
