Last month marked the second warmest July ever recorded for the planet, surpassing a 13-month stretch where each month set a new temperature record, partly driven by the El Nino weather phenomenon, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service. In a recent report, Copernicus noted that July was 1.48 degrees Celsius warmer than the pre-industrial baseline set between 1850-1990, and the past year has seen temperatures 1.64 degrees Celsius above this average, primarily due to climate change. Notably, July also saw the highest recorded temperatures for any two-day period. Copernicus primarily attributes these extreme temperatures to greenhouse gas emissions from industries reliant on fossil fuels, highlighting unusual temperature spikes in oceans typically unaffected by El Nino.

"The El Nino event has concluded, but the overall trend in global temperature increases mirrors that of a year ago," explained Julien Nicolas, a climate researcher at Copernicus, in an interview with Reuters. "We are still witnessing record-breaking temperatures leading to heatwaves... We can confidently link this prolonged warming trend to human-induced climate change." Temperatures exceeded the average in southern and eastern Europe, the western United States, western Canada, most of Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and eastern Antarctica. Conversely, cooler-than-average temperatures were observed in northwestern Europe, western Antarctica, parts of the United States, South America, and Australia. Additionally, July 2024 was notably wetter than usual in northern Europe and southeastern Turkey, while drought conditions continued in southern and eastern Europe. Arctic sea ice levels were 7% below average, a decline not as severe as the 14% drop in 2020 but higher than in 2022 and 2023. Antarctic sea ice reached its second lowest extent for July, at 11% below average, compared to 15% below average in July the previous year. Global sea temperatures remained near record highs, with July 2024 only 0.1 degrees Celsius cooler than the previous July, ending a 15-month streak of setting new records.

"The extent of the warming we've observed is quite surprising and prompts questions about what is occurring in the oceans beyond natural climate patterns like El Nino or La Nina. Are there changes in ocean currents?" Nicolas pondered.