In 2015, representatives from all countries attending COP21 agreed to limit global average temperature rise to well below 2.0 degrees Celsius above pre-Industrial levels and to aim for a 1.5 degree rise. Flash forward less than a decade, and the United Kingdom Meteorological Office is forecasting the average annual temperature for 2024 to likely be more than 1.5 degrees warmer than pre-Industrial levels. As the world continues to break annual, monthly, and daily temperature records, what does it mean that we're now exceeding the 1.5 degree threshold so soon after the Paris Agreement?

To help us understand the importance of this forecast, Dr. Nick Dunstone, leader of the Climate Dynamics Group at the Met Office and one of the scientists that conducted the forecast, joins the show to discuss what it means that 2024 may exceed the 1.5 degree threshold, the factors causing the record-breaking temperature, and what people and policymakers should take away from this historic milestone. Dr. Richard Betts, Head of the Climate Impacts Strategic Area at the Met Office, is also on today's episode to discuss his team's recent forecast of CO2 concentration in the atmosphere. As CO2 emissions continue to rise, it's no surprise that temperatures continue to rise as well. Dr. Betts helps explain the factors that contribute to 2024's record increase in CO2 concentration and provide context to this year's forecast.

Read The Met's 2024 Temperature Forecast

Read The Met's 2024 CO2 Concentration Forecast

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