Scientists say this summer could be the world's hottest on record, even as the warming effect of El Nino fades out to be replaced with the cooling La Nina.
An exceptional 12-month streak has seen every month through to May reach a new temperature high.
The records look set to continue, with scientists predicting the June to September period will remain hotter than average.
Heatwave warnings were issued in multiple countries this month, with soaring temperatures in parts of the US, Greece, Athens, Italy and the UAE, where the temperature reached more 50.3°C in the Um Azimul area of Al Ain this week.
Selwin Hart, UN special adviser on climate change, has warned that the recent spate of heatwaves is a sign of things to come.
“With every fraction of a degree of warming, dangerous heat is hitting larger regions of the world for many more days of the year,” said Friederike Otto, senior lecturer in Climate Science at the Grantham Institute – Climate Change and the Environment, at Imperial College London. “Last year, the world created about 37.4 billion tonnes of fossil fuel emissions, which is more than any other year.
“These planet-heating emissions mean this summer could become the hottest ever recorded, even with El Nino fading and shifting to La Niña.”
El Nino is a naturally occurring weather phenomenon which occurs every few years involving the warming of sea surface temperatures. That releases additional heat into the atmosphere, which produces wetter and warmer air.
It is normally, but not always, followed by La Nina, which has an opposite, cooling, effect.
The latest El Nino, which began in June 2023, peaked among the five strongest such events on record, according to the World Meteorological Organisation.
In May, the EU's Copernicus climate change service said El Nino continued to weaken “towards neutral conditions”.
But marine air temperatures in general remained “at an unusually high level” and have been high in many areas since.
“As of now it seems that it is surpassing what we recorded last June,” Akshay Deoras, a research scientist at the National Centre for Atmospheric Science and the Department of Meteorology at the University of Reading, told The National.
“So it seems to be a tight competition between the two years, 2023 and 2024. But I won’t be surprised if June 2024 overtakes what we saw in 2023.”
July and August will likely also continue the record-breaking streak, he said.
La Nina is now forming. But its cooling effect is not a light switch that takes place over a period of days. It takes months for it to take hold.
And in the context of a warming planet due to human-caused climate change, scientists say that the cooling effect may be minuscule.
Scientists are predicting this year will still be a top-five global mean temperature record, even accounting for the impact of La Nina.
“The second half of this year is when we would see things start to cool down,” said Mr Deoras.
“The first indication of that would be when global average temperatures for different months will be below what we recorded last year, for 2023.
“But they still won’t be anywhere close to the last average of 30 years and so on.
“We are still way above long-term average temperatures.”
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
UAE tour of Zimbabwe
All matches in Bulawayo
Friday, Sept 26 – UAE won by 36 runs
Sunday, Sept 28 – Second ODI
Tuesday, Sept 30 – Third ODI
Thursday, Oct 2 – Fourth ODI
Sunday, Oct 5 – First T20I
Monday, Oct 6 – Second T20I
HAJJAN
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Results:
First Test: New Zealand 30 British & Irish Lions 15
Second Test: New Zealand 21 British & Irish Lions 24
Third Test: New Zealand 15 British & Irish Lions 15
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
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Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
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Price: From Dh590,000
The five pillars of Islam
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MORE ON TURKEY'S SYRIA OFFENCE
The 10 Questions
- Is there a God?
- How did it all begin?
- What is inside a black hole?
- Can we predict the future?
- Is time travel possible?
- Will we survive on Earth?
- Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
- Should we colonise space?
- Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
- How do we shape the future?
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
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Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
Results
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