Earth experienced its hottest day on RECORD last Sunday: Global average temperature hit 17.09°C on July 21 - and scientists say climate change is to blame

Earth conscionable knowledgeable its hottest time successful recorded history, scientists astatine nan EU's ambiance alteration programme person revealed.

On Sunday (July 21), nan world's mean somesthesia deed 62.76°F (17.09°C) – conscionable exceeding nan erstwhile record of 62.74°F (17.08°C) from July 6, 2023.

This makes it nan hottest time going backmost to astatine slightest 1940, erstwhile records started. 

The scientists accent that this caller mean takes nan full satellite into relationship – not conscionable nan UK aliases so immoderate 1 circumstantial area. 

Worryingly, they opportunity human-caused greenhouse state emissions are to blasted for nan heat, pinch nan caller grounds described arsenic a 'fingerprint of ambiance change'. 

According to the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), the 10 years pinch nan highest regular mean temperatures are nan past 10 years – from 2015 to 2024. 

'What is genuinely staggering is really ample nan quality is betwixt nan somesthesia of nan past 13 months and nan erstwhile somesthesia records,' said Carlo Buontempo, C3S director.

'We are now successful genuinely uncharted territory and arsenic nan ambiance keeps warming, we are bound to spot caller records being surgery successful early months and years.' 

The ambiance work precocious revealed that June 2024 was nan 13th consecutive record-breaking month.

In different words, each period since June 2023 has been nan hottest ever recorded for that peculiar period – signifying an ongoing warming trend. 

'It's surely a worrying motion coming connected nan heels of 13 consecutive record-setting months,' said Dr Zeke Hausfather, ambiance intelligence at Berkeley Earth.

Dr Hausfather now estimates there's a 92 per cent chance that 2024 will hit 2023 arsenic nan warmest twelvemonth connected record.

C3S, managed by nan European Commission, looks astatine somesthesia readings based connected a assortment of platforms and instruments, from upwind stations to upwind balloons and satellites. 

The department's readings mention to nan mean aerial somesthesia for nan full satellite complete nan full twelvemonth – truthful little than a azygous typically 'hot' somesthesia reading. 

Sunday and last year's erstwhile record both smash an aged grounds of 62.24°F (16.8°C), which was group connected August 13, 2016.

Other years pinch record-breaking basking days are 2022, 2019, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2015, 1998, 2011 and 2009. 

The truth that these hottest days of nan twelvemonth are higher than earlier years successful nan grounds – for illustration successful nan 1970s and 1980s – are a worrying denotation of human-caused ambiance change, according to nan scientists. 

The truth that nan 'hottest time of nan year' has sewage truthful overmuch higher since nan move of nan period is simply a worrying denotation of human-caused ambiance change, nan scientists say. 

While 2024 has been highly warm, what kicked Sunday into caller territory was a warmer than accustomed Antarctic winter, according to CS3.

The aforesaid point was happening connected nan confederate continent past twelvemonth erstwhile nan grounds was group successful early July. 

But different factors see particularly precocious temperatures successful interior California, which baked pinch triple digit Fahrenheit heat, complicating much than 2 twelve fires successful nan US West.

At nan aforesaid time, Europe sweltered done its ain deadly power wave, pinch wood fires successful Greece and Croatia. 

Experts constituent nan digit astatine nan fossil substance industry, which emit greenhouse gases specified arsenic CO2 and methane by burning fossil fuels for illustration coal, state and oil. 

'The warming will proceed arsenic agelong arsenic we´re dumping greenhouse gases into nan ambiance and we person nan exertion to mostly extremity doing that today,' said Texas A&M University ambiance intelligence Andrew Dessler. 

Professor Michael Mann, ambiance intelligence astatine the University of Pennsylvania, said nan quality betwixt nan this year's and past year's precocious people is truthful mini and truthful preliminary that he is amazed nan European ambiance agency is promoting it.

'We should really ne'er beryllium comparing absolute temperatures for individual days,' Professor Mann.

However, Professor Victor Gensini, Northern Illinois University ambiance scientist, said 'what really benignant of makes your eyeballs jump out' is really nan past fewer years person been truthful overmuch hotter than erstwhile marks. 

There person been much than 30,500 days since Copernicus information started successful 1940, and Sunday is nan hottest of each of them, Professor Gensini pointed out. 

'It's surely a fingerprint of ambiance change,' he said.

Looking solely nan UK, Friday was nan hottest time of nan twelvemonth truthful far, according to nan Met Office, while 2023 was nan second-warmest year since records began successful 1884. 

The past week has offered a invited break for Brits aft a bedewed commencement to nan period saw nan state already deed by 97 per cent of nan month’s mean rainfall.