Scientists list 10 pressing climate issues: How 2023-24 became warmest, ocean warming among them

New climate science reveals 2023-2024 were the warmest years. Oceans are warming at an unprecedented rate, impacting ecosystems. Dengue outbreaks are at a record high due to climate shifts. These findings underscore the urgent need for accelerated climate action and strengthened global mitigation efforts.

Scientists have put forth 10 most pressing issues in climate research in a report, which include gaining knowledge on why 2023-2024 were the warmest years on record, unprecedented ocean warming and dengue expanding its footprint to largest on record.

The '10 New Insights in Climate Science 2025/2026' report summarises the work of an international team of scientists, including those from the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar and Germany's Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, who reviewed the most pressing findings in climate change research.

The results help in policymaking and society at large, the authors say.

With scientific evidence regarding the urgency of accelerating climate action mounting, the 30th UN Conference of the Parties -- 'COP30' -- is widely seen as an "implementation COP", they add.

Losses in labour productivity and income due to extreme weather, loss in biodiversity and an accelerating depletion of groundwater are among the other aspects that the authors have presented latest insights on.

In January this year, the World Meteorological Organization confirmed 2024 as the warmest year on record, which saw "exceptional land and sea surface temperatures and ocean heat".

"While the transition to El Nino conditions helped amplify recent temperature records, these climate fluctuations alone are insufficient to explain the anomalies," the authors write.

A notable increase in the imbalance of Earth's energy suggests global warming could be accelerating, they add.

Ocean surface is warming at an unprecedented rate and marine heatwaves are intensifying. A recent study, published in July in the journal Science, suggests that effects of marine heatwaves of 2023 may signal a climate tipping point, with irreversible damage to coral reefs and ecosystems.

Ocean warming is "driving severe ecological losses, eroding coastal livelihoods, and compounding risks from extreme weather, while also weakening the ocean's role as a carbon sink," the report states.

Investments in climate adaptation needs to be accelerated and global mitigation strengthened to prevent further ocean and climate destabilisation, the authors say.

Neglected tropical diseases, such as dengue, have been shown to expand their geographic reach, with climate change driving conditions of high humidity and rainfall that are conducive to breeding of mosquitoes.

A global report published by The Lancet journal shows dengue's potential for spreading to have increased by 49 per cent globally.

The authors of the climate insights report say "dengue has surged to its largest global outbreak on record".

"Climate-driven shifts in temperature have expanded mosquito habitats and lengthened transmission periods, compounding the effects of urbanisation, global connectivity, and inadequate waste management," they write.

They point to health systems under strain due to current outbreaks and projected to face steeper increases this century.
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Source: EconomicTimes
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