Rapid Climate Change Shooting At 'Unprecedented' Rate

Worryingly, global climate change is advancing at a dangerously "unprecedented" rate, suggests a new World Meteorological Organization (WMO) report.

In 2015, a number of records were smashed, such as shooting global temperatures, excessive rainfall, extreme droughts and unusual cyclones. This year, too, the climate change threatens to set new trends rolling.

"The year 2015 will stand out in the historical record of the global climate in many ways," said Petteri Taalas, WMO's secretary-general. "The future is happening now. The alarming rate of change we are now witnessing in our climate as a result of greenhouse gas emission is unprecedented in modern records."

This year's climate records seem to have been already broken in the first two months.

"The startlingly high temperatures, so far, in 2016 have sent shock waves around the climate science community," pointed out Dave Carlson, head of the WMO-co-sponsored World Climate Research Program.

The WMO report by a UN body has based its information on NASA data. It shows that carbon dioxide concentrations have crossed the threshold of 400 parts per million (ppm) in just the last two months. Hence, record-breaking heat trends indicate that Paris agreement needs to be followed.

"Our planet is sending a powerful message to world leaders to sign and implement the Paris Agreement on climate change and cut greenhouse gases now before we pass the point of no return," Taalas said.

Following the Paris agreement, there has been an attempt to bring down the temperatures to "well below" two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. However, there do not seem to be any indications that plans might be enough to avoid a temperature rise of three degrees celsius.

"Today, the Earth is already one degree Celsius hotter than at the start of the 20th century," Taalas concluded. "We can avert the worst-case scenarios with urgent and far-reaching measures to cut carbon dioxide emissions."