The United Nations has cautioned that 2025 is shaping up to be one of the hottest years ever, deepening global climate concerns.
A new World Meteorological Organization (WMO) report predicts this year could be the second or third warmest since records began 176 years ago, trailing only 2024, the hottest on record.
The findings emerged as global leaders met in Brazil’s Amazon region ahead of next week’s COP30 climate summit.
According to the WMO, greenhouse gas levels have reached new highs, trapping more heat in the atmosphere and oceans. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) also reported a 2.3% rise in emissions last year, mainly from India, China, Russia, and Indonesia.
WMO chief Celeste Saulo told world leaders in Belem that this data makes it “virtually impossible to limit global warming to 1.5°C in the next few years without temporarily overshooting the Paris Agreement target.”
The 2015 Paris Accord aims to keep the temperature rise “well below 2°C,” ideally capped at 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
Saulo added that despite current challenges, it remains “entirely possible and essential” to bring temperatures back to the 1.5°C goal by the end of the century through urgent and decisive action.
The report revealed that average surface temperatures were 1.42°C above pre-industrial levels in the first eight months of 2025.
Scientists noted alarming signs, record-low Arctic sea ice, persistently below-average Antarctic ice, and a surge in floods, fires, and extreme weather worldwide, impacting livelihoods and ecosystems.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the failure to meet climate goals as a “moral failure.” WMO’s Chris Hewitt stressed that how long the planet remains at these record temperatures depends on immediate global action, with COP30 decisions seen as crucial.
“The years 2015 to 2025 will all rank among the warmest ever observed,” the WMO stated, with 2023, 2024, and 2025 topping the list.
Despite the grim forecast, progress has been made; early warning systems have doubled since 2015, now covering 119 countries.
The UN emphasized that the path to recovery still exists, but only if governments swiftly reduce emissions, shift to clean energy, and protect vulnerable communities from escalating climate threats.