PARIS: The world just experienced its third-hottest September ever recorded, according to an announcement on Thursday by the Copernicus Climate Change Service. This continued the persistent trend of global average temperatures remaining near historical highs for yet another month, underscoring the ongoing impact of climate change.
While September didn’t surpass the record set in 2023, it was only marginally cooler than the same period last year. “The overarching global temperature situation remains consistent, with persistently elevated land and sea surface temperatures clearly indicating the relentless influence of greenhouse gas accumulation in our atmosphere,” stated Samantha Burgess, the strategic lead for climate at Copernicus, the European Union’s global warming monitor.
The average temperature for September stood at a concerning 1.47°C above the 1850-1900 baseline, a period used to define pre-industrial conditions before human activities drastically began altering the climate. Such seemingly small increases, scientists warn, are far from insignificant. Every fraction of a degree of additional warming further destabilizes our planet, escalating the risks of extreme weather events and potentially triggering irreversible climate tipping points.
The continuous rise in global temperatures is primarily driven by humanity’s vast emissions of greenhouse gases, predominantly from the burning of fossil fuels on an unprecedented scale since the industrial revolution.
Experts predict that 2025 is on track to be the third-hottest year, following 2024 and 2023, with recent months closely mirroring the exceptional temperature records established during this extraordinary period of warming.
This stark reality will be a central focus as nations convene in Brazil next month for the annual UN climate negotiations, a critical platform for addressing the collective global response to rising temperatures. Despite the urgency, many major economies are still not implementing emission cuts rapidly enough to avert the most severe impacts of climate change, with numerous countries continuing to approve new oil, coal, and gas projects.
Copernicus meticulously collects its climate data from billions of measurements sourced from satellites, ships, aircraft, and weather stations worldwide. While their official records date back to 1940, scientists utilize other invaluable data sources—such as ice cores, tree rings, and coral skeletons—to extend their conclusions and confirm historical climate patterns. Based on this comprehensive evidence, scientists assert that the Earth is currently experiencing its warmest period in the last 125,000 years.