The world experienced its warmest October on record, with average global surface air temperatures 1.75°C above pre-industrial times. (EPA Images pic)PARIS: The world is on track for 2026 to be the second-hottest year on record as an exceptionally strong El Nino weather pattern turbocharges human-driven global warming, the EU's climate monitor said Friday.
This year still has a "20% chance of tying or exceeding" 2024 as the warmest ever seen, the Copernicus Climate Change Service said in a monthly bulletin.
Global temperatures are now "virtually certain" to exceed 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels in 2026, Copernicus said.
The four-year average from 2023 to 2026 is also expected to top 1.5°C, the preferred limit set in the Paris Agreement to avert the worst impacts of climate change.
