Record-Breaking Heat: June Sizzles as Climate Changemakers Predict Hottest Year Ever

The EU's climate change monitoring service reports that June 2023 was the hottest on record, adding to a streak of record-breaking months. Scientists forecast that 2024 may surpass 2023 as the hottest year ever, driven by human-caused climate change and natural phenomena like El Nino.

June 2023 has been officially recorded as the hottest June ever, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). This continues a trend of rising temperatures, with every month since June 2023 ranking as the hottest in recorded history for its respective month.

Experts now warn that 2024 could eclipse 2023 as the hottest year on record. Human-induced climate change coupled with the El Nino phenomenon are largely to blame, pushing global temperatures to unprecedented highs. Zeke Hausfather, a research scientist at Berkeley Earth, estimates a 95% chance that 2024 will top 2023 in heat records.

The extreme heat has already led to severe consequences, including over 1,000 heat-related deaths during the haj pilgrimage and numerous fatalities in places like New Delhi and Greece. While El Nino is a natural event, climate experts stress the importance of reducing fossil fuel emissions to combat overarching climate change trends.

(With inputs from agencies.)