Earth has officially experienced its hottest year since record-keeping began, perhaps the hottest in 125,000 years. Scientists have anticipated this moment for months. As per Gavin Schmidt, a scientist at NASA, December data is yet to be official, but the results were deemed “locked in” by mid-December, considering six consecutive months of exceptionally high temperatures.

December cannot bring about a significant cold shift significant enough to affect the final results due to the warmth experienced throughout the year. The warming trend has raised concerns among experts, with Berkeley Earth's Robert Rohde noting in mid-December that 2023 cannot be anything but the hottest year on record.

Various renowned organizations, including NASA, Copernicus Climate Change Services, and NOAA, are expected to confirm the record as the "warmest year on record" soon.

In recent decades, climate experts have been concerned about unprecedented temperatures, reaching back millions of years. According to meteorologist Michael Mann, there is still time to prevent devastating climate consequences, but the window is closing.

Since 2014, NASA and NOAA consistently report that global average temperatures have been higher than during the previous century. Following a record-breaking year in 2016, which was influenced by El Nio, 2020 matched its record warmth.

Maritime heat waves and a developing El Nio in 2023 led scientists to predict significant temperature increases compared to the last century. In November, NOAA reported a global surface temperature 2.07 degrees Fahrenheit above the 1901-2000 average, surpassing the 2016 average.

The remaining question is how much warmer 2023 will be, as global agencies are due to conclude their final analyses in two weeks.

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and global institutions emphasize the need to limit the long-term global average temperature increase. Temperatures should not exceed 1.5 - 2.0 degrees Celsius in order to avoid severe outcomes.

A number of strategies are used to measure global average temperature, including weather stations, ocean temperature readings, and satellite data. In the absence of substantial efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the alarming trend of rising temperatures will persist.

It is expected that 2024 will be another record-breaking year, with a strong El Nio contributing to elevated global temperatures. According to the World Meteorological Organization, the five-year period from 2023 to 2027 was the warmest on record.

Each month in 2023 broke temperature records, with Earth experiencing 547 consecutive months when temperatures exceeded the 20th-century average. Heat waves influenced by climate change affected various regions globally, including the southern coast of the U.S., in May.

Besides soaring air temperatures, ocean temperatures have reached new records, causing coral bleaching in the Florida Keys. Over the course of decades, the oceans have become warmer due to the absorption of excess heat from greenhouse gas emissions.

The year 2023 also saw the return of El Niño, contributing to heightened ocean heat. In January 2022, the Hunga Tonga - Hunga Ha'apai volcano eruption released a large amount of water vapor, which scientists are investigating for the potential effects on Earth's warming.