- Cancer, cardiovascular drugs tipped for Nobel as prize week opens
- As Great Salt Lake dries, Utah Republicans pardon Trump climate skepticism
- Amazon activist warns of 'critical situation' ahead of UN forum
- Mourners pay tribute to latest victims of deadly Channel crossing
- Tunisia incumbent Saied set to win presidential vote: exit polls
- Phillies win thriller to level Mets series
- Yu bags first PGA Tour win with playoff win
- PSG held by Nice to leave Monaco clear at top of Ligue 1
- AC Milan fall at Fiorentina after De Gea's penalty heroics
- Lewandowski treble for leaders Barca as Atletico held
- Fresh Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Sucic stunner earns Real Sociedad draw against Atletico
- PSG draw with Nice, fail to reclaim top spot in Ligue 1
- Gudmundsson downs AC Milan after De Gea's penalty heroics for Fiorentina
- 'Yes' vote prevails in Kazakhstan nuclear plant vote: TV
- 'Difficult day': Oct 7 commemorations begin with festival memorial
- Commemorations begin for anniversary of attack on Israel
- Lewandowski hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- 'Nothing gets in way of team,' says Celtics' MVP hopeful Tatum
- India maintain Pakistan stranglehold as Windies cruise at Women's T20 World Cup
- 'We will win!': Mozambique's ruling party confident at final vote rally
- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Florida braces for Milton, FEMA head slams 'dangerous' Helene misinformation
- Postecoglou slams 'unacceptable' Spurs after 'terrible' loss at Brighton
- Marmoush double denies Bayern outright Bundesliga top spot
- Rallies worldwide call for Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire
- Maresca hails Chelsea's 'fighting' spirit after draw with 10-man Forest
- New 'Joker' film, a dark musical, tops N.America box office
- Man Utd stalemate keeps Ten Hag in danger, Spurs rocked by Brighton
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
- Vikings hold off Jets in London to stay unbeaten
- Ahead of attack anniversary, Netanyahu says: 'We will win'
- West Indies cruise to T20 World Cup win over Scotland
- Arshdeep, Chakravarthy help India hammer Bangladesh in T20 opener
- Lewandowski's quickfire hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Man Utd fire another blank in Aston Villa stalemate
- Lewandowski treble powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Russian activist killed on front line in Ukraine
- Openda strike briefly sends Leipzig top of Bundesliga
- Goal-shy Man Utd have to 'step up', says Ten Hag
- India bowl out Bangladesh for 127 in T20 opener
- Madueke rescues Chelsea in draw with 10-man Forest
- Beckett's belief rewarded as Bluestocking storms to Arc glory
- Trump on the stump, Harris hits airwaves in razor-edge US election
- Flash flooding kills three in northern Thailand
- Kaur leads India to victory over Pakistan in Women's T20 World Cup
- Juventus held by Cagliari after late penalty drama
- In France's Marseille, teen 'stabbed 50 times' then burned alive
- Ruthless Gauff beats Muchova in straight sets to win China Open
- India restrict Pakistan to 105-8 in Women's T20 World Cup
Virtually certain 2023 will be warmest year on record: US agency
Following another month of record-breaking temperatures throughout the globe in September, the year 2023 is all but certain to be the warmest on record, a US agency said Friday.
The unwelcome news comes as world leaders prepare to meet for crunch talks in Dubai in late November where phasing out fossil fuels, the main driver of human-caused climate change, will be top of the agenda.
"There is a greater than 99 percent probability that 2023 will rank as the warmest year on record," said the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in its monthly update.
The calculation was based on data gathered through September and on simulations of possible outcomes based on the historical record, from 1975 to present.
"September 2023 was the fourth month in a row of record-warm global temperatures," said NOAA chief scientist Sarah Kapnick in a statement.
"Not only was it the warmest September on record, it was far and away the most atypically warm month of any in NOAA's 174 years of climate keeping. To put it another way, September 2023 was warmer than the average July from 2001-2010."
Significant climate anomalies and events included Storm Daniel, which brought strong winds and unprecedented rainfall to eastern Libya, triggering widespread destruction including burst dams that killed more than 10,000 people.
An extratropical cyclone dumped more than 300 millimeters (12 inches) of rain in 24 hours over Brazilian states, triggering landslides and flooding that killed 30.
The average global temperature for September was 2.59 degrees F (1.44 degrees C) above the 20th-century average of 59.0F (15.0C), according to the NOAA data. It was 0.83F (0.46C) above the previous record from September 2020.
Holding long term warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels is seen as essential to avoid the most catastrophic consequences of climate change.
Africa, Europe, North America and South America each had their warmest September on record; Asia had its second-warmest, while Oceana had its third warmest, according to the NOAA data.
In the poles, Antarctica had its warmest September, while the Arctic saw its second warmest.
September 2023 also set a record for the lowest global September sea ice extent on record.
The oceans too experienced record-high monthly global ocean surface temperatures for the sixth consecutive month.
Despite increasing extreme weather events and record-shattering global temperatures, greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise and fossil fuels remain subsidized to the tune of $7 trillion annually.
D.Cunningha--AMWN