Global temperatures for the first six months of this year shattered yet more records, and mean that 2016 is on track to be the world’s hottest year on record.
Arctic sea ice melted early and fast, another indicator of climate change. Carbon dioxide levels, which are driving global warming, have reached new highs.
Two separate reports from the U.S National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies both highlighted the dramatic and sweeping changes in the state of the climate.
The average temperature in the first six months of 2016 was 1.3 degrees Celsius warmer than the late 19th century, according to NASA.
NOAA said the global land and ocean average temperature for January–June was 1.05 degrees Celsius above the 20th-century average, beating the previous record set in 2015 by 0.20 degrees Celsius.
