2024 officially hottest on record; NASA announced
(Credit: NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio)
AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Last year officially broke all the records. NASA announced Friday that the planet suffered through the hottest year on record.
Global temperatures were 2.30 degrees Fahrenheit above the agency's baseline (1951-1980). This is higher than the record set in the previous year.
"Collectively, the last 10 years have been the warmest in our record. And we're seeing more than just increases in average temperatures. We're also seeing impacts and extreme events all around the world," said NASA Chief Scientist Dr. Kate Calvin.
Beyond extreme temperatures, the planet also saw wild extremes in weather. From hurricanes striking the southeast to extreme heat during the early winter months in Texas.
"We also see changes in the water cycle around the world, which means more heavy precipitation events in some parts of the world and in some regions, more droughts," Dr. Calvin said.
Warming world
According to Dr. Calvin, global temperatures are trending warmer each year as a result of man-made greenhouse gases. She expects more extreme weather events as temperatures rise.
"As scientists, we understand the drivers and trends in temperature. We understand that greenhouse gases are warming our planet. We also know that there are natural cycles like La Nina and El Nino that can layer on top of that and lead to relatively warmer, relatively cooler years. I think for me, you know the fact that both that 2023 was the hottest year at its point in time, and now 2024 has surpassed it (surprises me)," Dr. Calvin said.
Studying extreme weather
NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration launched new satellites in 2024 to further study these weather extremes.
"One of the satellites we launched last year was called PACE. It's an ocean and atmosphere observing satellite, and it looks at tiny things in the ocean and the atmosphere, and that can give us information about air quality, about weather, harmful algal blooms fisheries, as well as about how climate is changing," Dr. Calvin said.
The other, launched alongside NOAA, is the GOES weather satellite. This satellite studies weather patterns and helps meteorologists with forecasting.