<p>Over the past many decades, scientific organisations and experts have warned the world about climate change and its consequences on life in the planet. The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), the United Nations’ climate-tracking agency, has regularly released reports highlighting the evolving crisis. </p><p>Its latest, the State of the Global Climate Report 2025, has presented a darker picture of our climate future – a world on the brink of a climate disaster, with all the markings of an irreversible tragedy. The report says the decade that ended in 2025 was the warmest in history. Key climate indicators, such as atmospheric greenhouse gases, surface temperature, ocean heat, ocean acidification, sea levels, the health of glaciers, and the extent of ice caps in the sea, have consistently underlined the impending fallout.</p>.<p>The world was about 1.43 degrees Celsius warmer than the pre-industrial average in 2025. The temperature has been rising over the last many years, even as efforts remained focused on limiting it to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. In 2024, the atmosphere saw the highest level of concentration of carbon dioxide in the last two million years, and the largest presence of methane and nitrous oxide in the last 800,000 years. </p><p>The report also notes the presence of excess energy accumulated in the atmosphere because of various factors. About 90% of this energy is absorbed in the form of heat by the oceans, which have seen their rate of warming double in the last 10 years. This indicates that the planet would continue to get warmer in the coming years, even if the emission of green house gases is stopped now.</p>.<p>This is the first time the WMO report has included energy imbalance that leads to excessive heat as a key climate indicator. It means that climate change has found momentum independent of actions that are aimed to control it. But accepting the inevitability risks weakening of counter-strategies. The crisis warrants strengthening of the global response which, so far, has fallen short in intent and impact. </p><p>UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has again reminded the world about the state of emergency global climate is in. The fight demands changes in the economic policies of governments, personal lifestyles, and the world’s collective vision for its future. Though there is a concerted movement that calls for such changes and efforts are on at the international level under the United Nations’ auspices, the results remain uninspiring. This is a race against time where half-steps won’t do.</p>
<p>Over the past many decades, scientific organisations and experts have warned the world about climate change and its consequences on life in the planet. The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), the United Nations’ climate-tracking agency, has regularly released reports highlighting the evolving crisis. </p><p>Its latest, the State of the Global Climate Report 2025, has presented a darker picture of our climate future – a world on the brink of a climate disaster, with all the markings of an irreversible tragedy. The report says the decade that ended in 2025 was the warmest in history. Key climate indicators, such as atmospheric greenhouse gases, surface temperature, ocean heat, ocean acidification, sea levels, the health of glaciers, and the extent of ice caps in the sea, have consistently underlined the impending fallout.</p>.<p>The world was about 1.43 degrees Celsius warmer than the pre-industrial average in 2025. The temperature has been rising over the last many years, even as efforts remained focused on limiting it to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. In 2024, the atmosphere saw the highest level of concentration of carbon dioxide in the last two million years, and the largest presence of methane and nitrous oxide in the last 800,000 years. </p><p>The report also notes the presence of excess energy accumulated in the atmosphere because of various factors. About 90% of this energy is absorbed in the form of heat by the oceans, which have seen their rate of warming double in the last 10 years. This indicates that the planet would continue to get warmer in the coming years, even if the emission of green house gases is stopped now.</p>.<p>This is the first time the WMO report has included energy imbalance that leads to excessive heat as a key climate indicator. It means that climate change has found momentum independent of actions that are aimed to control it. But accepting the inevitability risks weakening of counter-strategies. The crisis warrants strengthening of the global response which, so far, has fallen short in intent and impact. </p><p>UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has again reminded the world about the state of emergency global climate is in. The fight demands changes in the economic policies of governments, personal lifestyles, and the world’s collective vision for its future. Though there is a concerted movement that calls for such changes and efforts are on at the international level under the United Nations’ auspices, the results remain uninspiring. This is a race against time where half-steps won’t do.</p>
