World Meteorological Organization: Global Temperatures to Stay Unusually High Through Early 2027

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) says the developing El Niño in the Pacific is expected to raise global temperatures by another 0.1 to 0.2 degrees Celsius, keeping the world unusually hot through the rest of 2026 and into early 2027. According to Sina Finance, the WMO said in its State of the Climate report, released as the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) opened in Turkey on November 9, that 2026 is on track to be among the warmest years on record; September temperatures were 1.47 degrees Celsius (2.65 degrees Fahrenheit) above the pre-industrial average. WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo said weather systems were being increasingly disrupted and El Niño would amplify climate risks, giving “record-breaking” a new meaning. Data from the European climate monitoring service Copernicus indicate that global temperatures in 2026 are expected to exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The threshold was breached in 2024, the hottest year on record. The United Nations expects global temperatures to remain above it over the long term. Even in the best-case scenario, warming this century would reach 1.8 degrees Celsius, requiring emissions cuts far deeper than countries have currently pledged. If countries meet their current commitments, warming is still expected to reach 2.6 degrees Celsius. At a news conference in Antalya, Turkey, Saulo said adaptation was struggling to keep pace with continued warming and that current carbon dioxide emissions made the 1.5-degree target unattainable. The 2026 El Niño is the strongest on record, and the WMO expects it to continue until February next year. The temperature anomaly in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific could reach 3.7 degrees Celsius, compared with 0.2 degrees in March. The phenomenon alters global temperatures and rainfall patterns and the likelihood of droughts, floods, heat and other extreme events. UN climate chief Simon Stiell said the powerful El Niño was amplifying climate change and bringing a “double deadly blow.” He described the climate crisis as a global public health emergency comparable to a pandemic, with hazards from toxic pollution to extreme heat putting pressure on health systems and infrastructure. The WMO said global sea levels rose by an average of 3.9 millimeters per year from 2017 to 2026, compared with 2.4 millimeters per year from 1993 to 2002. Rising ocean heat in 2026 indicates that Earth is absorbing heat faster. Ocean expansion as water warms and melting sea ice are both contributors to sea-level rise. The WMO found that Arctic sea ice reached its lowest or second-lowest maximum extent on record in March 2026. Extreme weather affected renewable energy differently around the world in 2025: solar power generation in Europe was above average, while wind generation and temperature-driven electricity demand were below average. In central and southern Africa, low rainfall reduced hydropower while electricity demand increased. The number of countries with climate early-warning systems rose from 56 a decade ago to 136 in 2025, bringing the world closer to the UN goal of providing everyone with such services by the end of 2027.