By Mary O’KEEFE

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed that 2024 was the warmest year on record based on six international datasets. The past 10 years have all been in the top ten warmest years on record in an extraordinary streak of record-breaking temperatures.

Not much more to say. The world is warming and no matter how much we want that info to be false … it is not. 

“We have likely seen the first calendar year with a global mean temperature that is more than 1.5 degrees Celsius (which equals 34.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above the [years] 1850-1900 average,” according to WMO.

And before anyone starts thinking this is just one radical measurement, this data is the result of six international datasets.

“2024 saw exceptional land and sea surface temperatures and ocean heat,” WMO stated. “There is a margin of error uncertainty in all temperatures assessments. All six datasets place 2024 as the warmest year on record and all highlight the recent rate of warming. But not all show the temperature anomaly above 1.5 degrees Celsius due to differing methodologies.”

A separate study published in Advances in Atmospheric Science found that the warming of the ocean in 2024 played a key role in the record high temps. 

“The ocean is the warmest it has ever been as recorded by humans, not only at the surface but also for the upper 2,000 meters,” according to that study.

About 90% of the excess heat from global warming is stored in the ocean. 

The warming of our Earth comes from the concentration of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that trap heat in the Earth’s atmosphere. Studies have shown that as the Earth warms it affects the weather in dramatic ways. For example, dramatic rainfall in 2019 in central Africa caused Lake Victoria’s water levels to rise by over three feet causing severe flooding in the area. In 2020, the Atlantic hurricane season included 30 tropical storms, six major hurricanes and a total of 13 hurricanes. These all broke records at the time.

In 2024, the Atlantic hurricane season, which ends on Nov 30, showed above-average activity with a record-breaking ramp-up following a peak-season lull. There were 18 “named storms” in 2024 with winds of 39 mph or greater. Eleven of those were hurricanes, meaning 74 mph or greater, and five intensified to major hurricanes, winds of 111 mph or more. Five hurricanes made landfall in the continental U.S. with two storms making landfall as major hurricanes, according to NOAA.

So hurricanes, droughts and flood … the warming of the planet affects us all. 

I have dealta lot with kids and it is common that even when we see one kid push down another kid, the “pusher” will say – over and over again – that s/he did not push down another child. It is said so often that the pusher actually convinces him/herself, that s/he in fact did not have anything to do with that kid’s fall. It becomes the reality of the pusher but, as adults, it is our responsibility to teach kids that it is better to tell the truth, face the consequences and then, most importantly, learn from that mistake. Children need to be taught that being wrong isn’t a weakness but can be a strength – if we learn from it. It is all part of growing up, all part of learning how to be a responsible adult. 

We need to take that parenting philosophy to heart and face the truth that we’re changing the climate – admit we have a hand in creating this problem and learn from it. 

Our area will see drizzle from today through Monday. 

There is a storm that will be affecting the central coast Monday through Wednesday (April 2), which could bring us a small amount of rain, according to NOAA.

The bulk of our Southern California rain comes to us from December to March, with April being more of a transitional month.