Global temperatures stood 1.4°C above pre-industrial levels last month, data published by EU earth-monitoring service Copernicus today showed. This marks the second-warmest May on record but dips below the critical 1.5°C marker.
The global surface air temperature averaged 15.79°C in May, just 0.12°C below a record high for the month posted last year. This was 0.06°C above the temperature in May 2020, which was previously the second highest recorded, and 0.53°C above the May average over 1991-2020.
Temperature levels varied by area, including within Europe, where they stood above average in the west of the region and below average in the east.
The global average surface air temperature had exceeded 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels in 21 of the previous 22 months, according to Copernicus data.
"Whilst this may offer a brief respite for the planet, we do expect the 1.5ºC threshold to be exceeded again in the near future due to the continued warming of the climate system," Copernicus Climate Change Service director Carlo Buontempo said.
The Paris climate agreement seeks to limit the rise in global temperatures to "well below" 2°C and preferably to 1.5°C, to avoid the worst effects of climate change.
Two weeks of UN-convened technical halfway point climate talks will begin in Bonn, Germany, next week, ahead of the Cop 30 climate summit in November.
