Atmospheric_CO2 will break another record this year and will move away from limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees

The increase in carbon dioxide (CO₂) accumulated in the atmosphere is now “incompatible” with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) path of limiting global warming to below 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

This is according to a study carried out by the United Kingdom’s Met Office (Met Office) and released on Friday.

Last year saw the fastest annual increase in CO₂ concentration in the atmosphere ever recorded at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii, whose historical series begins in 1958. The average increase of 3.58 parts per million (ppm) exceeded the Met Office’s prediction of 2.84 ppm. Satellite measurements also showed a rise in atmospheric CO₂ around the world, due to the impact of record emissions from burning fossil fuels, magnified by weaker natural carbon sinks, such as tropical forests, and exceptional wildfires. This was due to widespread hot and dry conditions, partly related to the El Niño phenomenon and partly to other factors, including climate change. The Met Office study indicates that the accumulation of CO₂ in the atmosphere must be reduced by 1.8 ppm each year to meet the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees compared to the pre-industrial era, a temperature target enshrined in the Paris Agreement to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

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