El Niño forecast to drive record heat from the Amazon to Alaska in 2024

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🗞️ Driving the news: The El Niño climate event, coupled with human-caused global heating, is set to bring record-breaking temperatures across the globe in 2024
• Regions such as the Amazon, Alaska, coastal areas of India, the Philippines, the Caribbean, and areas by the South China Sea are expected to face unprecedented heat, with the first half of the year seeing the most significant impacts

🔭 The context: El Niño, a natural phenomenon characterized by the release of heat from the western Pacific Ocean, exacerbates the global warming trend caused by the increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
• The effect is anticipated to peak in the early months of 2024, leading to intense heatwaves, tropical cyclones, and a rise in sea levels, posing severe challenges to adaptation and risk management efforts

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: The escalation of global temperatures threatens to intensify wildfires, melt glaciers and permafrost, and cause coastal erosion, particularly in vulnerable areas
• The persistence of heat in oceans and coastal regions underscores the urgent need for global climate action to mitigate these risks

⏭️ What's next: The forecasted temperature surge calls for enhanced global efforts in adaptation, mitigation, and risk management to combat the impending climate crisis
• Monitoring and preparation for marine heatwaves, wildfires, and other related disasters will be crucial in the coming months

💬 One quote: "Densely populated coastal areas are facing an enormous and urgent climate crisis that challenges our current capacity for adaptation, mitigation and risk management," said Dr Ning Jiang, Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences

📈 One stat: A 90% chance exists that the global temperature over the first half of 2024 will set a new record, highlighting the severity of the impending climate crisis

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