World extends run of heat records for 11th straight month

APRIL was the Earth’s 11th consecutive month of record-breaking heat, with warmer weather already sweeping across Asia and a hotter-than-usual summer expected in Europe.

The European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service said last month’s temperatures globally were 1.58 deg C above historical averages and marked the hottest April on record.

The past 12 months have been 1.61 deg C higher than pre-industrial temperatures, exceeding the 1.5 deg C threshold that policymakers and scientists say could threaten life on the planet. 

“Whilst temperature variations associated with natural cycles like El Niño come and go, the extra energy trapped into the ocean and the atmosphere by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases will keep pushing the global temperature towards new records,” Copernicus Director Carlo Buontempo said in a statement.

Temperatures across Europe are expected to climb into the weekend, with the UK’s Met Office forecasting highs of 26 deg C in parts of England.

The Nordics are also warming up, with Oslo forecast to reach a high of 23 deg C on May 14, hotter than Madrid, according to Weather Services International.

SEE ALSO

Worsening weather is igniting a US$25 billion market

The Business Times turns 50

Five decades of milestones and moments that shaped Singapore’s success story - told through our headlines.

Explore BT50»

The Copernicus programme –  the world’s biggest provider of climate data – uses billions of measurements from satellites, ships, aircraft and weather stations around the world for its monthly and seasonal forecasts. BLOOMBERG