UN chief says world is on ‘highway to climate hell’ as planet endures 12 straight months of unprecedented heat

According to new data from Copernicus, the European Union's climate monitoring service, the planet has just reached a "shocking" new milestone, enduring 12 consecutive months of unprecedented heat.

Copernicus data shows that every month from June 2023 to May 2024 was the world's warmest month on record.

The 12-month heatwave was "shocking but not surprising" given man-made climate change, said Copernicus director Carlo Buontempo, who warned of worse to come. Unless pollution from planet-warming fossil fuels is curbed, "this streak of warmest months will go down in history as relatively cold," he said.

Copernicus published its data on the same ...