Arctic Heating Set to Soar Three Times Faster Than Global Average, UN Weather Agency Warns

By Olivia Le Poidevin

GENEVA (The News Pulse) — The coming five years are anticipated to see additional records for high temperatures globally, according to a fresh report from the U.N. meteorological organization released on Wednesday. The study indicates that warming in the Arctic region will likely be over triple the rate observed worldwide.

The WMO report indicates that there’s an 80% probability that at least one among the coming five years will experience record-breaking temperatures. It also suggests a strong possibility that the mean temperature increase could surpass 1.5 degrees Celsius (or 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) compared to pre-industrial levels.

In the record-books as the warmest year last year witnessed the initial violation of the 2015 Paris climate accord. This pact obligated nations to prevent global temperature rise from exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius.

The World Meteorological Organization stated that from this year through the end of 2029, the average global near-surface temperature is projected to range from 1.2°C to 1.9°C above the pre-industrial baseline established during 1850-1900. This increase is expected to exacerbate severe weather events.

It stated in a release that every extra increment of temperature increase triggers more severe heat waves, extreme precipitation incidents, powerful droughts, thawing of ice sheets, sea ice, and glaciers, along with ocean warming and higher sea levels.

In the Arctic region, the expected increase in temperature will speed up ice melting both in the Arctic and the northwest Pacific Ocean.

According to the report, Arctic warming is expected to exceed three-and-a-half times the global average, reaching an increase of 2.4°C compared to the mean temperature of the latest thirty-year reference period across the upcoming five winter seasons.

The World Meteorological Organization’s report stated that worldwide temperatures will stay at or close to peak levels through the end of this decade.

The meteorological service predicts above-normal precipitation in regions such as the Sahel, northern Europe, Alaska, and northern Siberia during the period from May to September spanning 2025 through 2029. Conversely, drier than average conditions are anticipated across the Amazon during this same timeframe.

(Reported by Olivia Le Poidevin; Edited by Helen Popper)