Last year has broken climate records: It has been the warmest year since records began and extreme weather events have increased around the world. Two recent reports confirm, once again, that climate change is happening.
Image: Getty Images/C.Quicler
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The results of the annual checkup on our planet do not bring good news. On average, 2016 was even warmer than 2015 - previously the warmest year. These are the findings of the State of the Climate, published on today by the American Meteorological Society.
"The increase in CO2 concentration was the largest in the nearly six-decade observational record," NOAA wrote.
It amounted in average to 402.9 parts per million (ppm) - 3.5 ppm more than in 2015. For the first time, the limit of 400 ppm has been exceeded.
Unfortunate new records
Last year, the temperature of the Earth's surface was on average 0.45 to 0.56 degrees Celsius higher than the average temperature from the 1981 to 2010, which was used for comparison.
Together with global warming, El Niño caused catastrophic droughts in Central America, Brazil, Southern Africa, India and North Australia - while at the same time bringing heavy rains to the Pacific Northwest in the United States, Southeast China and parts of South America.
The cyclone Wilson devastated houses and killed people in the Fiji Islands Image: Reuters/J. Dayal
Tropical cyclones - that is, cyclones in the Indian Ocean and the Southern Pacific - have also become more common. In 2016, there were a total of 93 cyclones, including the cyclone Winston in the Fiji Islands in February. The average for the years 1981 to 2010 was 82 cyclones.
By 2016, global sea levels have risen 82 millimeters above 1993 levels (established as the zero line). Over the past two decades, sea levels have increased by an average of 3.4 millimeters per year.
The Antarctic experienced its warmest year, with two degrees above the average temperatures. On March 24, the sea ice spread over 5.61 million square miles (14.54 million square kilometers), 7.2 percent less than the average. However, it was still at the same level as in 2015 - but the sea ice in the Antarctic has further decreased compared to 2015.
The data show that the year 2016 was "very extreme and it is a cause for concern," Jessica Blunden, climate scientist at the NOAA, said in the report.
Climate change also affects US
US President Donald Trump does not tire of announcing that he does not believe in climate change, and he has set himself to undoing Barack Obama's environmental policy, which had recently focused on the fight against climate change.
So some US media were excited to report on a draft government report that concludes that the US is already experiencing climate change.
The Climate Science Special Report - compiled by NASA and NOAA, among 13 other federal agencies - is part of a national climate report Congress requests every four years. The final draft has been online since January. By August 18, the US government will have to sign off on it - including Trump himself.
"Evidence for a changing climate abounds, from the top of the atmosphere to the depths of the oceans," the report reads.
New York City suffered an extreme heat wave in August 2016Image: Getty Images/D.Angerer
The study has examined all US regions - and researchers have reached the conclusion they all are affected by climate change. According to the report, the volume of precipitation has increased by about 4 percent since the beginning of the 20th century.
Parts of the West, Southwest and Southeast in the US are drying out - while the Midwest is becoming wetter. The surface temperatures in Alaska have risen alarmingly - twice as fast as the world average, the researchers found.
However, researchers were not in agreement regarding a 2011 heat wave in Texas.
Some conclude that local weather phenomena, together with a strong La Niña, were the cause of high temperatures in Texas. Others contend that climate change makes such extreme temperatures in Texas 20 times more likely.
But all researchers agree: Through all the symptoms of climate change our planet is currently experiencing, the common denominator is that humans are to blame.
Europe's extreme weather summer
This year looks set to be among the hottest on record - no surprise to the southern Europeans sweltering out the "Lucifer" heat wave. Across the continent - from wildfires to tornados - extreme weather is on the rise.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/V. Ghirda
Lucifer rising
A scorching heat wave nicknamed "Lucifer" has swept through southern Europe, wreaking havoc as temperatures soared above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), from Spain in the west to the Balkan states in the east. Crops have wilted, water sources evaporated and wildfires have been raging.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/V. Ghirda
Gimme shelter
Mallorca's record temperatures sent tourists scurrying for shade. Here, they've find a touch of relief under Palma Cathedral. Hospital admissions have spiked in several countries, with heat-related deaths recorded in Italy, Spain and Romania.
Image: picture-alliance/dap/P. Schirmer Sastre
Those summer nights
... and things haven't improved much after sundown. Here, a Palma street thermometer registers 33 degrees Celsius late in the evening, offering no escape from the heat. Scientists say 2017 looks set to continue the recent trend and count among the hottest years on record.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Schirmer Sastre
When in Rome
Tourist-packed Rome is among the capital cities worst hit by the heat wave. The Vatican was forced to turn off drinking fountains in July. Luckily, welcome relief was provided as temperatures climbed into the 40s in downtown Rome last week.
Image: Reuters/M. Rossi
Mud bath, anyone?
As Madrid warmed to an uncomfortable 39 degrees Celsius in June, it wasn't just the city's human inhabitants who felt the heat. Here, a rhino at the city's zoo does it's best to keep cool.
Image: picture-alliance/Pacific Press/J. Sanz
Fun and games
Kids, at least, were making the most of efforts to keep cool in Nice, southern France. Across Europe, public fountains have drawn crowds. Meanwhile, roads leading out of cities toward the coast - as well as some airports - have become jammed as city-dwellers try to escape the urban swelter.
Image: Reuters/E. Gaillard
Electric skies
Not just heat - July 2017 was Germany's wettest since records began in 1881, with heavy rain drowning out plans for barbecues and sunbathing, and lightning electrifying the skies. While it is becoming more possible to connect individual weather events such as heat waves or storms to climate change, scientists say global warming has contributed to the rise of extreme weather around the world.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Kusch
Wet and wild
While other European cities craved water, revelers at Berlin's annual Christopher Street Day parades braved lashing rain to celebrate Gay Pride. Berlin, like much of Germany, has had an unusually wet summer, complete with giant hailstones and dramatic thunderstorms.
Image: Reuters/F. Bensch
Timber!
Northern Germany in particular has seen gale-force winds this summer that left streets littered with debris. Storms even brought down entire trees, like this impressive old chestnut in Hamburg, which was hit by a tornado in June. Traffic, trains and flights have been disrupted and at least two people killed.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. Bockwoldt
Washout
Austria, too, has been hit by the deluge. Tourist hoping for a relaxing break in Salzburg were pummeled by rain and hail in August, with the popular Grossarltal Valley completely cut off by floods. At least three people were killed.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/E. Scheriau
Smoky summer vacation
In southern Europe, forest fires are among the greatest dangers of high summer temperatures. Here, tourists soaking up rays on the Côte d'Azur watch the hills burning above them. Authorities were forced to evacuate 10,000 people from the area.
Image: Reuters/J.P. Pelissier
Scorched earth
Fires have also swept through areas of Croatia, Italy, Portugal and Spain, causing damage to homes, farms and forests. By late July, Europe had seen more than three times the annual average number of fires. Severe fires in Portugal in June killed 64 people.
