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Earth Is Hotter Than at Any Time Since Steam Engine Was Invented

Earth Is Hotter Than at Any Time Since Steam Engine Was Invented

(Bloomberg) -- The last five years on Earth have been hotter than at any time since the industrial revolution kicked off almost two centuries ago.

That’s the conclusion of Europe’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, which published data on Wednesday showing that global average temperatures since 2015 were some 1.2 degrees Celsius (2.2 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than when steam engines began powering industry. Last year was the second warmest on record after 2016.

“These are unquestionably alarming signs,” Jean-Noel Thepaut, the head of climate change monitoring at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, said in an email.

As wildfires continue to ravage Australia and pollution increasingly chokes millions living in cities, the new data highlights the rapid changes that the Earth’s ecosystem is undergoing as a result of man-made carbon emissions.

Earth Is Hotter Than at Any Time Since Steam Engine Was Invented

After its invention in the 17th century, the steam engine was developed to power the locomotives and factories that proliferated during the industrial revolution.

The Copernicus Climate Change Service operates a network of satellites for the European Union that collects weather, soil, air and water data.

Other report highlights include:

  • 2019 was Europe’s warmest year, marginally higher than temperatures in 2014, 2015 and 2018
  • Global average temperatures in 2019 were 0.6 degrees Celsius warmer than the 1981 to 2010 average
  • Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration increased by about 2.3 parts per million in 2019, to the second-highest level on record

To contact the reporter on this story: Jonathan Tirone in Vienna at jtirone@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Reed Landberg at landberg@bloomberg.net, Andrew Reierson, Lars Paulsson

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