{"id":239123,"date":"2023-07-17T12:00:06","date_gmt":"2023-07-17T11:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=239123"},"modified":"2023-07-12T03:53:44","modified_gmt":"2023-07-12T02:53:44","slug":"temperatures-off-the-charts-but-more-records-imminent-wmo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2023\/07\/temperatures-off-the-charts-but-more-records-imminent-wmo\/","title":{"rendered":"Temperatures Off the Charts, but More Records Imminent: WMO"},"content":{"rendered":"

10 Jul 2023 – Global sea surface temperatures reached a record high in May, June and July \u2013 and the warming El Ni\u00f1o weather pattern is only just getting started \u2013 experts at the UN World Meteorological Organization\u00a0said<\/a> today.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Global sea surface temperatures were at a record high in May and June 2023.
Unsplash\/Rafael Garcin<\/p><\/div>\n

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Alarm bells have been rung at the UN agency in particular because of an \u201cunprecedented peak\u201d in sea surface temperatures in the North Atlantic.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first week of July\u2026could be considered as the warmest period or the warmest week ever recorded\u201d, with a global average temperature close to 17.24 degrees Celsius on 7 July, said Omar Baddour, Chief of Climate Monitoring at WMO<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Unprecedented is new normal<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The WMO expert added that daily June temperatures in the North Atlantic had been \u201cdramatically high\u201d compared to usual readings, while Antarctic sea ice levels reached their lowest extent for June since satellite observations began.<\/p>\n

At a shocking 17 per cent below average, this year\u2019s readings broke the June 2022 record by a substantial margin and represented \u201ca really dramatic drop in the sea ice extent\u00a0in the Antarctica\u201d \u2013 some 2.6 million square kilometers of lost sea ice.<\/p>\n

Michael Sparrow, Chief of WMO\u2019s World Climate Research Programme, highlighted that \u201cit really is completely unprecedented” seeing this kind of reduction in sea ice around the Antarctic.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Antarctic region is normally thought of being relatively stable; it is much colder than the Arctic. We\u2019re used to seeing these big reductions in the sea ice in the Arctic, but not in the Antarctic.\u201d<\/p>\n

A marine heatwave<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Beyond Antarctica, the UN agency warned that the \u201cmarine heatwave\u201d would also impact fisheries distribution and ocean ecosystems, with knock-on effects on the climate.<\/p>\n

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The world just had the hottest week on record, according to preliminary data. It follows the hottest June on record, with unprecedented sea surface temperatures and record-low Antarctic sea ice extent. #StateOfClimate<\/a><\/p>\n

\ud83d\udd17 https:\/\/t.co\/NbYM6Nllii<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/5Vaw3ISs8A<\/a><\/p>\n

— World Meteorological Organization (@WMO) July 10, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n