Climate change: September record stunned researchers

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On average, temperatures around the world are increasing every month; This is not surprising. But what’s happening now is surprising climate researchers. In September, temperatures rose much higher than expected.

Not only was this the warmest September ever recorded, it was also the abnormally warmest month on record. It was 1.75 degrees above the pre-industrial reference period and 0.5 degrees Celsius warmer than the previous period.

“We have gone beyond anything we have experienced before”

“In the professional judgment of a climate scientist, September was absolutely crazy,” writes climate researcher Zeke Hausfather. It can’t be emphasized enough how extraordinary global temperatures are. “They went far beyond anything we’ve ever experienced.”

2023 is on track to be the hottest year since measurements began. And from afar. Mika Rantanen of the Finnish Meteorological Institute writes: “I find it difficult to understand how a single year can increase so much compared to previous years.”

And it’s not just the air temperature that amazes researchers; According to the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”, sea surface temperatures have been well above previously measured temperatures for months.

Volcanic eruption may be partly to blame

Researchers told the newspaper that climate change alone was not responsible. The El Nino weather phenomenon is also likely to play a role. Another factor: the eruption of the underwater volcano Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai in Tonga in the South Pacific. This explosion occurred a year and a half ago and released large amounts of water vapor into the atmosphere. This took time until it formed a layer around the planet; This layer now creates, simply put, the greenhouse effect.

But climate researchers can’t say for sure why the oceans are getting so warm. And it could have major impacts on our winter. According to climate researcher Anders Levermann from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), rising temperatures in the North Atlantic could disrupt the jet stream and then suck tropical air into Greenland, for example, or transport cold air from the poles to another region. Europe.

“The fact that current events are so far removed from what existed before should give us pause,” Levermann tells the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”. “We could face extreme weather events we cannot yet imagine,” he warns. (what is that)

Source : Blick