Omens not boding well after 2023 record heat

With extreme weather and climate change-related natural disasters, 2023 was the warmest year ever recorded since meteorological data started being systematically recorded.

Although a documented forecast cannot be made, the likelihood that 2024 will be among the five to 10 warmest since the mid-19th century is heightened by the elevated temperatures in the first two months of the year, the "legacy" of 2023, and general trends as reflected in meteorological and climate models. After all, the past nine years have been the warmest on record globally.

"2023 has been identified as the year to remember for the density and magnitude of extreme weather events observed across the globe. These phenomena include the devastating Mediterranean cyclone Daniel, the fires in Canada and on Maui in Hawaii, as well as tropical cyclones, drought and fires in many regions, said Christos...