It’s official: 2023 was the warmest year on record, according to data from the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.
The global average temperature in 2023 was 0.17°C higher than the previous record set in 2016.
It was 1.48°C warmer than pre-industrial levels (between 1850 and 1900).
The climate organisation’s records date back to 1850.
2023: the warmest year on record, and beyond
Copernicus Deputy Director Samantha Burgess said these temperatures likely exceed those of any period in the last 100,000 years.
Keeping global temperatures less than 1.5°C higher than pre-industrial levels is a key target to limiting the effects of climate change. World leaders agreed to the target under the 2015 Paris Agreement.
