Global warming has accelerated in a “statistically significant” way since 2015, according to a study published by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK).
The study found that over the past 10 years, the estimated warming rate has been around 0.35 degree Celsius per decade, compared with just under 0.2C per decade on average from 1970 to 2015.
“This recent rate is higher than in any previous decade since the beginning of instrumental records in 1886,” it added.
Study coauthor Grant Foster said that the researchers had “filtered out” natural influences likely to obscure the underlying temperature trend, such as the El Niño phenomenon, volcanic eruptions, and variations in solar activity. In that way, the ‘noise’ is reduced, making the underlying long-term warming signal more clearly visible.
“If the warming rate of the past 10 years continues, it would lead to a long-term exceedance of the 1.5C limit of the Paris Agreement before 2030, PIK researcher and lead author of the study, Stefan Rahmstorf said.
Scientists say the last 11 years have been the warmest ever recorded, with 2024 topping the podium and 2023 in second place.
The question of a potential increase in the rate of planetary warming has sparked debate within the scientific community.
Whether it is confirmed by scientists or not, what is certain is that our world is warming at a rate that is not sustainable, and what is important is that humans should be doing all we can to slow down the rate of warming, while we still can. Because if we don’t do anything, the consequences are terrifying.
Let us not wait to confirm just how terrifying it can be.*
