{"id":305332,"date":"2025-10-20T12:01:12","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T11:01:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=305332"},"modified":"2025-10-18T07:40:52","modified_gmt":"2025-10-18T06:40:52","slug":"carbon-dioxide-levels-increase-by-record-amount-in-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2025\/10\/carbon-dioxide-levels-increase-by-record-amount-in-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Carbon Dioxide Levels Increase by Record Amount in 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>15 Oct 2025\u00a0<\/em>&#8211; Carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2<\/sub>) levels in the atmosphere soared by a record amount to new highs in 2024, committing the planet to more long-term temperature increase, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).<\/p>\n<div class=\"flex-1 lg:w-[60%] lg:flex-none\">\n<div class=\" flex flex-col gap-4 md:gap-5 lg:gap-6\">\n<div class=\"text-sm md:text-base\">\n<div class=\"font-semibold\"><strong>Key messages:<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"item-list\">\n<ul class=\"m-0 p-0 list-disc\">\n<li><em>CO2 impacts climate today and for many centuries\u00a0<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Concerns mount about carbon sinks like forests and oceans\u00a0<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Rising temperatures are accompanied by more extreme weather<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Strengthened monitoring is vital to inform action<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate.jpg\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-305333\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"267\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"container-wide w-full\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-col lg:flex-row gap-4 md:gap-5 lg:gap-10 items-stretch\">\n<div class=\"flex-1 flex flex-col lg:justify-end\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-row items-center gap-4\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-row gap-4 items-center\">The <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/wmo.int\/publication-series\/wmo-greenhouse-gas-bulletin-no-21\" >WMO Greenhouse Gas Bulletin<\/a> said continued emissions of CO<sub>2<\/sub> from human activities and an upsurge from wildfires were responsible, as well as reduced CO<sub>2<\/sub> absorption by \u201csinks\u201d such as land ecosystems and the ocean \u2013 in what threatens to be a vicious climate cycle.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"container-wide w-full\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-col-reverse lg:flex-row gap-4 md:gap-5 lg:gap-10 items-stretch\">\n<div class=\"flex-1 lg:w-[80%] lg:flex-none\">\n<div class=\" flex flex-col gap-6 md:gap-8 lg:gap-10\">\n<div class=\"prose text-wmo-blue-gray-900 max-w-5xl \">\n<div class=\"clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item\">\n<p>Growth rates of CO<sub>2<\/sub> have tripled since the 1960s, accelerating from an annual average increase of 0.8 ppm per year to 2.4 ppm per year in the decade from 2011 to 2020. From 2023 to 2024, the global average concentration of CO<sub>2<\/sub> surged by 3.5 ppm, the largest increase since modern measurements started in 1957.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe heat trapped by CO<sub>2<\/sub> and other greenhouse gases is turbo-charging our climate and leading to more extreme weather. Reducing emissions is therefore essential not just for our climate but also for our economic security and community well-being,\u201d said WMO Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett.<\/p>\n<p>Concentrations of methane and nitrous oxide \u2013 the second and third most important long-lived greenhouse gases related to human activities \u2013 have also risen to record levels.<\/p>\n<p>WMO released the annual greenhouse gas bulletin to provide authoritative scientific information for the UN Climate Change conference in November. The COP 30 meeting in Bel\u00e9m, Brazil, will seek to ramp up climate action.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSustaining and expanding greenhouse gas monitoring are critical to support such efforts,\u201d said Oksana Tarasova, coordinator of the Greenhouse Gas Bulletin, which is one of WMO\u2019s flagship scientific reports and is now in its 21<sup>st<\/sup> issue.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"prose text-wmo-blue-gray-900 max-w-5xl \">\n<div class=\"clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-additional-technical-info field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item\">\n<h3>Carbon dioxide \u2013 continued emissions and less effective carbon sinks<\/h3>\n<p>When the bulletin was first published in 2004,\u202fthe annual average level of CO<sub>2<\/sub> measured by WMO\u2019s Global Atmosphere Watch network of monitoring stations was 377.1 ppm. In 2024 it was 423.9 ppm.<\/p>\n<p>About half of the total CO<sub>2<\/sub> emitted each year remains in the atmosphere and the rest is absorbed by Earth\u2019s land ecosystems and oceans. However, this storage is not permanent. As global temperature rises, the oceans absorb less CO<sub>2<\/sub> because of decreased solubility at higher temperatures, whilst land sinks are impacted on a number of ways, including the potential for more persistent drought.<\/p>\n<p>The likely reason for the record growth between 2023 and 2024 was a large contribution from wildfire emissions and a reduced uptake of CO<sub>2<\/sub> by land and the ocean in 2024 \u2013 the warmest year on record, with a strong El Ni\u00f1o.<\/p>\n<p>During El Ni\u00f1o years, CO<sub>2<\/sub> levels tend to rise because the efficiency of land carbon sinks is reduced by drier vegetation and forest fires \u2013 as was the case with exceptional drought and fires in the Amazon and southern Africa in 2024.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is concern that terrestrial and ocean CO<sub>2<\/sub> sinks are becoming less effective, which will increase the amount of CO<sub>2<\/sub> that stays in the atmosphere, thereby accelerating global warming. Sustained and strengthened greenhouse gas monitoring is critical to understanding these loops,\u201d said Oksana Tarasova, a WMO senior scientific officer.<\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s CO<sub>2<\/sub> emissions to the atmosphere not only impact global climate today, but\u00a0will do so for hundreds of years because of its long lifetime in the atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate.png\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-305335\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate-1024x418.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"285\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate-1024x418.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate-300x122.png 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate-768x313.png 768w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate.png 1324w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Globally averaged CO2 concentration (a) and its growth rate (b) from 1984 to 2024. Increases in successive annual means are shown as the shaded columns in (b). The red line in (a) is the monthly mean with the seasonal variation removed; the blue dots and blue line in (a) depict the monthly averages. Observations from 179 stations were used for this analysis.<\/p>\n<h3>Methane and Nitrous Oxide<\/h3>\n<p>Methane accounts for about 16% of the warming effect on our climate by long-lived greenhouse gases and has a lifetime of about nine years. Approximately 40% of methane is emitted into the atmosphere by natural sources (for example, wetlands) which are sensitive to climate as well, and about 60% comes from anthropogenic sources such as cattle, rice farming, fossil fuel exploitation, landfills and biomass burning.<\/p>\n<p>The globally averaged methane concentration in 2024 were 1942 parts per billion (ppb) \u2013 an increase of 166% above pre-industrial (before 1750) levels.<\/p>\n<p>Nitrous oxide is the third most important long-lived greenhouse gas and comes from both natural sources and due to human activities such as biomass burning, fertilizer use and various industrial processes.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate2.png\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-305336\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"331\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate2.png 530w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/global-warming-co2-environ-climate2-300x248.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The globally averaged concentration reached 338.0 ppb in 2024, an increase of 25% over the pre-industrial level.<\/p>\n<p>Contribution of the most important long-lived greenhouse gases to the increase in global radiative forcing from the pre-industrial era to 2024.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>WMO Greenhouse Gas Bulletin 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"WMO Greenhouse Gas Bulletin\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/AEhu4DYG6AI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>Notes to Editors<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"flex flex-col gap-4 md:gap-5 lg:gap-6\">\n<div class=\"prose text-wmo-blue-gray-900 max-w-5xl \">\n<div class=\"clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-notes-to-editors field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item\">\n<p>The WMO Global Atmosphere Watch Programme coordinates systematic observations and analysis of greenhouse gases and other atmospheric constituents. Greenhouse gas measurement data are archived and distributed by the World Data Centre for Greenhouse Gases (WDCGG) at the Japan Meteorological Agency.<\/p>\n<p>A separate and complementary Emissions Gap Report by UN Environment is scheduled for release on 4 November. The Emissions Gap report assesses the latest scientific studies on current and estimated future greenhouse gas emissions; they compare these with the emission levels permissible for the world to progress on a least-cost pathway to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. This difference between \u201cwhere we are likely to be and where we need to be\u201d is known as the emissions gap.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text-wmo-cyan-dark\">\n<div class=\"text-sm md:text-base\">\n<div class=\"font-medium\">\n<div class=\"clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-boilerplate field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item\">\n<p>The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation in atmospheric science and meteorology.<\/p>\n<p>WMO monitors weather, climate, and water resources and provides support to its Members in forecasting and disaster mitigation. The organization is committed to advancing scientific knowledge and improving public safety and well-being through its work.<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/wmo.int\/news\/media-centre\/carbon-dioxide-levels-increase-record-amount-new-highs-2024\" >Go to Original &#8211; wmo.int<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>15 Oct 2025\u00a0&#8211; CO2 levels in the atmosphere soared to new highs in 2024, committing the planet to more long-term temperature increase, according to a new report from the WMO.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":305339,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[61],"tags":[686,2604,401,993,685],"class_list":["post-305332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-environment","tag-climate-change","tag-co2","tag-environment","tag-global-warming","tag-greenhouse-gases"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/305332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=305332"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/305332\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":305344,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/305332\/revisions\/305344"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/305339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=305332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=305332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=305332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}