Paris: Last month marked the hottest October on record globally, as reported by Europe's climate monitor, the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). With temperatures surpassing previous averages by substantial margins, scientists predict that 2023 is on track to become the warmest year in recorded history.

The extreme heat experienced in recent months intensifies the urgency for global leaders to address and curb greenhouse gas emissions. As leaders prepare to gather for the UN COP28 climate conference in Dubai this month, the pressure to take decisive climate action has never been more critical.

October witnessed severe drought conditions in parts of the United States and Mexico, while significant areas experienced above-average rainfall, often associated with storms and cyclones. Sea surface temperatures reached unprecedented levels for the month, contributing to the intensification of storms and their destructive impacts.

Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of C3S, highlighted the exceptional temperature anomalies observed in October, continuing a trend of global temperature records being consistently broken over the past four months. The year 2023 is expected to be the warmest on record, currently standing at 1.43 degrees Celsius above the preindustrial average.

The Paris Agreement's goal of limiting global warming to well below two degrees Celsius, preferably 1.5 degrees Celsius, is under increasing pressure. This year has also marked the beginning of a warming El Niño weather phenomenon, further contributing to elevated temperatures globally.

October recorded a temperature 1.7 degrees Celsius higher than the estimated average for the pre-industrial era. Since January, global average temperatures have consistently been the highest in records dating back to 1940, registering 1.43 degrees Celsius above the 1850-1900 pre-industrial average.

The oceans, which have absorbed 90 percent of the excess heat generated by human activity since the industrial age, continue to warm. Warmer oceans are linked to intensified storms, the melting of critical ice shelves, and the threat of sea-level rise.

As leaders convene for COP28, they will confront a stark progress report on the world's Paris Agreement pledges. Carbon emissions, primarily from fossil fuels, are on the rise when drastic reductions are imperative. The consequences of the nearly 1.2 degrees Celsius temperature rise above pre-industrial levels are evident in extreme weather events worldwide.

Ed Hawkins, Professor of Climate Science at the University of Reading, emphasized the need for immediate action, stating that humanity possesses solutions to address climate change but must make different choices to confront the issue now. The world has entered "uncharted territory" with warming that poses a severe threat to life on Earth.

The global population has already faced heatwaves, droughts, severe flooding, and wildfires in 2023, underlining the urgent need for decisive and collective efforts to combat climate change.