Official UN announcements and press releases

2024 Warmest Year on Record in India and Globally, Exceeding 1.5°C Threshold with 41 Extra Heat Days

Jan 1, 2025, 12:10 PM

The year 2024 has been confirmed as the warmest on record in India since 1901, with the average minimum temperature settling 0.90 degrees Celsius above the long-period average. The annual mean land surface air temperature across India was 0.65 degrees Celsius above the long-term average of the 1991-2020 period, surpassing the previous record set in 2016 by 0.54°C. This trend of rising temperatures is part of a global pattern, with 2024 also being the warmest year on record worldwide, and the first to exceed the critical global warming threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The United Nations has warned that the world is on a 'road to ruin' due to record heat and extreme weather events fueled by rising emissions. Additionally, the world experienced an average of 41 extra days of dangerous heat in 2024. In China, 2024 was also the warmest year in decades, with a national average temperature of 10.92°C, marking the second consecutive year of breaking temperature records.