- The 12-month period that concluded in March was also the hottest 12-month period on record for the globe.
- The data from C3S dates back to 1940, and the previous month’s March was the warmest since the pre-industrial era.
- Extreme weather and unusually high temperatures have characterized this year.
The world’s warmest March on record was reported by the European Union‘s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), capping a 10-month run of continuously breaking temperature records.
The 12-month period that concluded in March was also the hottest 12-month period on record for the globe. The average global temperature between April 2023 and March 2024 was 1.58 degrees Celsius greater than it was during the pre-industrial era between 1850 and 1900.
Warmest March
The long-term trend of extraordinary records is worrisome because it demonstrates how quickly our climate is changing. The data from C3S dates back to 1940, and the previous month’s March was the warmest since the pre-industrial era.
In terms of worldwide records, 2023 has already been the hottest year since 1850. Extreme weather and unusually high temperatures have characterized this year. Drought brought on by climate change has caused record-breaking wildfires in Venezuela and crop loss and starvation in Southern Africa.
Additionally, due to warmer waters, marine scientists have issued a warning about a massive coral bleaching event that could be the worst in recorded world history occurring in the Southern Hemisphere.
El Nino, the meteorological pattern that warms the surface waters of the eastern Pacific Ocean, and greenhouse gas emissions created by humans are the main causes of the unusual heat. The average sea surface temperature reached a record high globally, while marine air temperatures remained abnormally high, even though El Nino abated in March.
