Global mean surface temperature difference compared with 1850-1900 average, 1850-2023. Six different data sets are shown. The 2023 annual average global temperature was 1.45 ± 0.12 °C above pre-industrial levels. Graphic: WMO

WMO confirms that 2023 smashed global temperature record – “Humanity’s actions are scorching the earth. 2023 was a mere preview of the catastrophic future that awaits if we don’t act now.”

12 January 2024 (WMO) – The annual average global temperature approached 1.5° Celsius above pre-industrial levels – symbolic because the Paris Agreement on climate change aims to limit the long-term temperature increase (averaged over decades rather than an individual year like 2023) to no more than 1.5° Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Six leading international datasets used for […]

Overview of the Congress Center ahead of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, 7 December 2023. Photo: Denis Balibouse / REUTERS

Davos 2024: Extreme weather and misinformation top global risks – “The widespread use of misinformation and disinformation, and tools to disseminate it, may undermine the legitimacy of newly elected governments”

By Victoria Waldersee 11 January 2024 (Reuters) – Risk specialists see extreme weather and misinformation as most likely to trigger a global crisis in the next couple of years, a World Economic Forum (WEF) survey released on Wednesday said. While extreme weather was identified as the bigger risk in 2024, misinformation and disinformation came second […]

Azerbaijan’s Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Mukhtar Babayev speaks during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 11 December 2023. Photo: Thomas Mukoya / REUTERS

Azerbaijan names former oil exec to lead COP29 climate talks – “With another petrostate hosting the climate conference, our concerns multiply”

By Sibi Arasu 5 January 2024 (AP) – Azerbaijan’s ecology minister has been named to lead the United Nations’ annual climate talks later this year, prompting concern from some climate activists over his former ties to the state oil company in a major oil-producing nation. Mukhtar Babayev’s appointment was announced on X by the United […]

Former British energy minister Chris Skidmore is seen outside Downing Street in London, Britain on 21 May 2019. Photo: Hannah Mckay / REUTERS

UK Conservative lawmaker quits, criticizes government’s climate plans – “I can no longer condone nor continue to support a government that is committed to a course of a action that I know is wrong and will cause future harm”

By Alistair Smout 5 January 2024 LONDON (Reuters) – A former British energy minister on Friday said he would quit the ruling Conservatives and stand down as a lawmaker over the government climate record, rebuking plans to allow more North Sea oil and gas licencing. Chris Skidmore’s resignation will trigger a by-election to replace him […]

Great Lakes average ice cover, 1973-2023. The black line at the bottom shows the 2023-2024 season’s ice cover to January 1st. At the beginning of January 2024, the Great Lakes had the smallest amount of ice cover on New Year’s Day in at least the previous 50 years. Graphic: NOAA

Great Lakes start 2024 with smallest amount of ice in at least 50 years – “There’s a clear trend, and ice cover in the Great Lakes is decreasing”

By Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff 2 January 2024 (The Washington Post) – The Great Lakes had the smallest amount of ice cover this New Year’s Day in at least the past 50 years and are on track to see less than the seasonal average this winter, according to government data. The decline comes during a five-decade drop […]

The most expensive tuna sold at the first auction in 2024. The "Near Threatened" fish sold for 114.2 million Japanese yen, or nearly $800,000, at Tokyo’s largest fish market and is set to be served at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Japan. The 525-pound fish, caught off of the coast of Aomori Prefecture in northern Japan, fetched the fourth-highest price since records began in 1999. Photo: Kiyoshi Ota / Bloomberg

$800,000 tuna to be turned into sushi at Michelin-starred restaurant

By Nathan Rennolds 6 January 2024 (Business Insider) – A bluefin tuna sold for 114.2 million Japanese yen, or nearly $800,000, at Tokyo’s largest fish market is set to be served at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Japan. The 525-pound fish, caught off of the coast of Aomori Prefecture in northern Japan, fetched the fourth-highest price […]

Sean de Guzman, the manager of the California department of water resources snow surveys and water supply forecasting unit, and his team measure snowpack in January 2024. Photo: Andrew Nixon / California department of water resources

California snowpack lowest in decade despite hope with December 2023 storms – “In some places there is literally no measurable snow on the ground at all”

By Gabrielle Canon 4 January 2024 (The Guardian) – In the first snow survey of the season, California came up short – just 25% of the historical average – despite a spate of strong storms that caused flooding and landslides along the coast in late December. On Tuesday, officials measured a depth of just 7.5in at a […]

Map showing the Mean surface air temperature anomaly in the UK for 2023 compared to the 1991-2020 average. Graphic: Met Office

2023 was second warmest year on record for UK – “We expect this pattern to continue as our climate continues to change in the coming years as a result of human-induced climate change”

2 January 2024 (Met Office) – 2023 was provisionally the second warmest year on record for the UK, with Wales and Northern Ireland having their respective warmest years in a series from 1884. UK climate continues to change UK mean temperatures have been shifting over the decades as a result of human-induced climate change. The […]

2023 had the warmest December on record for Sea-Tac, Olympia, and Quillayute, with mean daily average temperatures of 45.5°F (7.5°C) in Seattle and Olympia, and 48.0°F (8.9°C) in Quillayute. Graphic: NWS Seattle

Seattle set record-high December temperatures in 2023, following global trend – “It is unlikely that this would reverse anytime soon, unless there’s very, very drastic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions”

By Lauren Girgis 4 January 2024 (Seattle Times) – If you like the snow, this unusually warm winter likely isn’t for you. Snow levels this season have been “marginal, to say the least,” said Rune Harkestad, president of Kittitas County’s Kongsberger Ski Club, based east of Snoqualmie Pass. December did bring a fair share of […]

Percentage of documented and undocumented mines, by country. More than half of the global mining areas (56 percent) visible from satellite images have no production information available listed in a global compilation from the S&P Capital IQ Pro database. The total worldwide mining land use for mining in 120,000 km2, with 67,000 km2 undocumented. Graphic: Nature

Impacts for half of the world’s mining areas are undocumented – 56 percent of global mining areas visible from satellite images have no production information available

By Victor Maus and Tim T. Werner 3 January 2024 (Nature) – Mining is a crucial industry — from iron and copper to gravel and sand, we depend on it for the basic building blocks of the modern world. It is a fast changing sector, as the clean energy transition and digitalization boost demand for […]

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