Experts say 2024 has a one in three chance of breaking 2023’s global temperature record.
ADVERTISEMENTIt isn’t yet the end of January and temperature records in Europe are already being broken.
Spain experienced a day of historic January heat on Thursday with some areas recording temperatures of more than 28C.
Fredes, Valencia - 1,200 metres above sea level - saw the mercury hit 21.6C. The ski resort of Puerto de Navacerrada which is usually covered in snow at this time of year didn’t drop below 10C at night.
Throughout January, temperature records have been broken in more than 90 places, according to Spanish meteorology institute AEMET.
On 25 January alone more than 400 observation stations, around half of those in the national network, reached or exceeded 20C with the average maximum across the country around 18 to 19C.
To put this record high into perspective, the average maximum temperature in January is usually 10.6C.
The warm weather is expected to continue into the weekend with an area of high atmospheric pressure carrying a hot air mass from further south and blocking incoming storms from the Atlantic Ocean.
As several regions, including Andalusia and Catalonia, face historic drought the unusual heat and lack of rain are adding to worries about dwindling water supplies. Reservoir levels are critically low and even stricter restrictions on water use could soon be on the way.
Portugal and France are experiencing unusual temperatures too
Across the border in Portugal, the central district of Leiria reached 23C with weather agency IPMA expecting 24C there on Friday. It said temperatures on Thursday were 8 to 9C above normal levels in the north of the country.
In France, Météo-France is predicting that temperatures in the south of the country will remain above the seasonal average until the end of the month.
Le Luc in the southeastern Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region hit a high of 22.5C on Wednesday with further January records being broken around the Mediterranean in Montpellier, Le Castellet and Arles.
And with concerns about ongoing drought, Météo-France says there’s little to no rain in sight for the Mediterranean region. In the Pyrénées-Orientales, the soil is the driest it has been in January since records began and could soon reach “unprecedented” levels.
Could 2024 be warmer than 2023 - the hottest year on record?
But it isn’t just Europe that is breaking temperature records.
A severe heatwave is affecting large parts of Australia with some inland areas experiencing their hottest days since the devastating 2019-2020 wildfires. Some regions have sweltered through temperatures approaching 50C with all-time heat records at risk of tumbling.
South Africa has seen scorching temperatures and high fire risks in the last week. Argentina’s National Meteorological Service has issued a series of alerts for high temperatures exceeding 40C over the weekend - including the capital city of Buenos Aires.
It’s a similar story in many countries around the world this January.
Scientists at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said last week that 2024 has a one in three chance of being hotter than 2023 - the warmest year since records began.
The 2023 record was made possible by a combination of climate change and the El Niño climate pattern. This natural event leads to warmer surface waters in the Pacific Ocean and higher global temperatures.
ADVERTISEMENT“Not only was 2023 the warmest year in NOAA’s 174-year climate record - it was the warmest by far,” said NOAA Chief Scientist Dr Sarah Kapnick.
“We will continue to see records broken and extreme events grow until emissions go to zero.”
With El Niño predicted to continue into April, NOAA experts say there is a good chance 2024 will be yet another hot year with a 99 per cent chance it will be one of the five warmest the world has seen since records began.
