Findings in a major international report indicate that 2015 was the worst year in modern history across a range of key climatic indicators with the “toppling of several symbolic mileposts”, international scientists have said. The report noted record highs in the average global temperature, global sea levels and the concentration of greenhouse gases.
Deemed the Earth’s “annual physical” by Thomas R. Karl, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) division, the peer reviewed ‘State of the Climate’ report is published annually by the American Meteorological Society and led by NOAA. Over 450 scientists from 62 countries contributed to the comprehensive 300-page report addressing independent data collected from land, water, ice and space.
The results from the record-breaking year were exacerbated by some of the strongest El Niño conditions experienced on the planet since 1950, as well as “longer-term global warming trends” according to Karl.
Global surface temperatures surpassed the previous record set in 2014 by more than 0.1°C and for the first time exceeded pre-industrial conditions by more than 1°C. The UN predicts that 2016 will be hotter yet, with June 2016 being the fourteenth consecutive month of record highs recorded on land and oceans.
Greenhouse gas concentrations also measured in as the highest in recorded history. The global average for atmospheric CO2 concentrations was 2.2ppm above 2014 data at 399.4ppm.
Measurements at the Mauna Loa research station in Hawaii recorded concentrations of CO2 at 400.8ppm surpassing the largely regarded symbolic threshold of 400ppm.
Global sea levels rose to record levels in 2015 to 70mm above the 1993 levels, which is considered to be the start in accurate measurements achieved by satellites.
The study noted the correlation between the records and a proliferation in extreme weather events, which has worrying implications for humans and other species.
The interaction between El Niño and an increased water cycle lead to a 14 percent rise in “extreme drought” in some areas and above normal precipitation resulting in flooding in others.
India was afflicted with a major heat wave in May 2015 where temperatures soared to 47°C in some locations. Over 2,500 fatalities were attributed to the extreme conditions.
Maximum sea ice levels in the Arctic were the lowest in the 37-year record, at seven percent below the 1981-2010 average. This raised concern among scientists for the impact on Arctic species.
Tropical cyclones were also more prominent, with 101 recorded across all ocean basins in 2015. The annual average from 1981-2010 was 82.