COP31: WMO warns El Niño could push 2027 temperatures higher

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has warned that 2027 could become the hottest year on record as an unusually strong El Niño combines with the effects of climate change to push global temperatures higher.
WMO Secretary-General, Celeste Saulo, gave the warning on Monday while presenting the organisation’s State of the Climate Update 2026 at a news conference during the ongoing COP31 climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye.
Saulo said the past 12 years had been the warmest on record, with the last four years, including 2026, ranking as the hottest.
She disclosed that global average temperatures between January and September 2026 were approximately 1.47 degrees Celsius above ...