A hot dry spring in Canada’s boreal forest led to record wild fires in Canada, here a fire approaches La Ronge Saskatchewan, Massive wildfires also occurred in California, South Arfrica and Australia

A hot dry spring in Canada’s boreal forest led to record wild fires in Canada, here a fire approaches La Ronge Saskatchewan, Massive wildfires also occurred in California, South Arfrica and Australia
Photo Credit: (Corey Hardcastle/Reuters

It’s official, 2015 was hottest year on record

Today, Wednesday, scientists confirmed what the World Meteorological Organization and  many other scientific groups suspected months ago, that 2015 was going to be the hottest year in 136 years of record keeping.

They also said that the five year period from 2011-2015 was the warmest five years on record.  The WMO said the increased temperatures were due in large part from human activity and is, “consistent with established long-term warming trends, the dominant cause of which is the emission of anthropogenic greenhouse gases.”

Several agencies have all come up with similar measurements, NOAA, NASA in the US and the Met Office in the UK all show that 2015 was the warmest year on record.
Several agencies have all come up with similar measurements, NOAA, NASA in the US and the Met Office in the UK all show that 2015 was the warmest year on record. © NOAA NASA

The U.S., National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NASA say for the first time, the Earth is 1-degree Celsius warmer on average than it was in pre-industrial times.

In India, roads began to melt and at least 2,000 people died as heat reached 50 degrees in some areas
In India, roads began to melt and at least 2,000 people died as heat reached 50 degrees in some areas © Harish Tyagi/EPA

Recently the international climate talks in Paris (COP-21) agreed that countries should do their utmost to reduce greenhouse gas emmissions to try to keep warming from surpassing 1.5 degrees Celsiusm.

A huge dam in Brazil holds back almost no water, only died mud, The huge city of Sao Paulo Brazil almost ran out of water in the hottest summer on record
A huge dam in Brazil holds back almost no water, only died mud, The huge city of Sao Paulo Brazil almost ran out of water in the hottest summer on record © Nacho Doce/Reuters

While many point to the effects of “El Nino”- the warming of a large region of the Pacific Ocean that affects climate, noted climate  . Michael Mann of Pennsylvania State University said the the El Nino effect, “sits upon the ramp of global warming.”

Unprecedented droughts and high temperatures in many part of thew orld in 2015 caused a great amount of concern.
Dru lake bed, California 2015,Unprecedented droughts and high temperatures in many part of thew orld in 2015 caused a great amount of concern, from lack of drinking water, to massiver forest fires. © Rich Pedroncelli/ Associated Press

Last year saw major climate disturbances including many severe and unusual droughts around the world in some places, while others saw abnormal rains and flooding, and while heat was a huge problem in many areas, others like eastern Canada saw abnormal Arctic temperatures as the jet stream changed its usual flow.

Based on projections, there are also predictions already that 2016 could top 2015

Additional information- sources

Categories: Environment & Animal Life, International, Internet, Science & Technology, Society
Tags: , , , , ,

Do you want to report an error or a typo? Click here!

For reasons beyond our control, and for an undetermined period of time, our comment section is now closed. However, our social networks remain open to your contributions.