Global warming has become the new standard, with last month marking the second hottest May ever recorded both on land and in the oceans, according to the European Union’s climate monitoring service.
The planet’s average surface temperature fell just below the 1.5 degree Celsius mark above pre-industrial levels, nearly matching the record set last May, as reported by the Copernicus Climate Change Service.
This trend is mirrored in the world’s oceans, where last month recorded a surface temperature of 20.79C, second only to May 2024, with some regions experiencing unprecedented warmth.
“Vast areas of the northeast North Atlantic, which went through a marine heatwave, saw record surface temperatures for the month,” stated Copernicus. “Most of the Mediterranean Sea was significantly warmer than usual.”
Marine heatwaves are prompting shifts in species distribution, harming ecosystems, and impairing the mixing of ocean layers, which in turn restricts nutrient distribution.
Covering 70% of Earth’s surface, oceans play a vital role in redistributing heat and regulating the global climate.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres addresses attendees at the third UN Ocean Conference in Nice, France.
The warming of surface waters due to climate change is leading to increasingly intense storms, resulting in unprecedented destruction and flooding.
In Europe, certain regions “experienced their lowest precipitation and soil moisture levels since at least 1979,” according to Copernicus.
The UK is experiencing its most severe drought in decades, with Denmark and the Netherlands also facing significant rainfall deficits.
‘Temporary Break’
Last month, Earth’s surface temperature was recorded at 1.4C above the pre-industrial average, defined as the temperature between 1850 and 1900, prior to the extensive use of fossil fuels that accelerated climate change.
“May 2025 breaks an unprecedented streak of months above the 1.5C mark,” noted Carlo Buontempo, director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service.
Only one of the past 22 months remained below this critical threshold, which aligns with the 2015 Paris Agreement’s most ambitious goal for limiting global warming.
A man seeks shade from the intense heat in Noida, India.
“Although this may provide a temporary break for the planet, we anticipate that the 1.5C threshold will soon be surpassed again due to ongoing climate warming,” he added.
Over the 12-month span from June 2024 to May 2025, the average warming was 1.57C in relation to the 1850-1900 benchmark.
The Paris Agreement’s target is based on a 20-year average to account for natural variability.
A man protects himself from the sun in Ronda, Spain, during a heatwave.
The UN’s climate science advisory body, the IPCC, has indicated a 50% probability of surpassing the 1.5C limit based on these criteria between 2030 and 2035.
By this method of calculation, the world has warmed by at least 1.3C as of today.
Meanwhile, the UN’s World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reports a 70% chance that the five-year period from 2025 to 2029 will, on average, exceed the 1.5C threshold.
Scientists emphasize the urgent need to limit global warming as effectively and quickly as possible, given that even a fractional increase heightens the risks of more deadly and destructive impacts on land and in the sea.
Limiting warming to 1.5C instead of 2C would significantly mitigate the most catastrophic consequences, as concluded by the IPCC in a significant report in 2018.
