International organizations including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) have released data claiming that the consequences of climate change will only get worse in the years to come.
According to the agencies, the year 2019 was the second warmest year since 1880, the year when official record-keeping of annual temperatures began. In 2019, annual global temperature increased 0.98 °C than the 1960s. 2019 was also the second wettest year due to torrential rainfalls and mass flooding.
2016 remains the hottest year on record so far.
Every decade is getting warmer than the previous one ever since the 1960s. The past decade was the hottest decade on record with record-breaking temperatures witnessed in its last five years. Even more alarming is the revelation that the temperatures only went up during the second half of the previous decade.
Although the global temperature is on the rise, its effects are not getting distributed equally on the entire Earth. For instance, for the 34th straight year, temperatures went up for the United States and areas bordering it. Meanwhile, the Arctic region is getting warmer three times faster than the rest of the Earth.
Increasing temperatures in the atmosphere and oceans have manifested into mass loss of Greenland and Antarctica. Hurricanes Harvey and Florence hit with unprecedented intensities while numerous incidents of massive fires were recorded in the previous decade.
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Last year, the agencies collected the data from 20,000 weather stations, sea surface ships and Antarctic research stations. NOAA concluded that temperatures are increasing with the increase in the emission of greenhouse gases. Meanwhile, NASA called on governments to become more proactive in abating the effects of climate change.
