Highest ever carbon dioxide levels measured in 2022, 5th warmest year on record: EU report

The past eight years are the warmest on Earth.

Gawain Pek | January 13, 2023, 04:54 PM

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The past eight years are the warmest on Earth ever since recordkeeping began, a European Union (EU) report revealed.

Atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide and methane also reached their highest levels, based on satellite records.

The report was prepared based on observations and data gathered by the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) programme.

2022 mean temperature 1.18oC above pre-industrial levels

Based on data gathered by the programme alone, the past eight years are the warmest on record "by a clear margin".

Image via EU C3S.

Datasets from other monitoring programmes are likely to corroborate this finding when they became available later in 2023, the report said.

Average global temperature in 2022 is 1.18oC above that of year 1850 to 1900, the reference period for pre-industrial levels.

2022 is the fifth warmest year on record, though this record was set "by a small margin", C3S said a press release.

"So far, the hottest years on record globally are 2016, 2020 and 2019 and 2017 respectively", the researchers said.

Highest CO2 and methane levels on satellite record

The report also shared that global mean column-averaged atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide in 2022 stood at 417ppm.

Atmospheric concentrations of methane stood at 1894ppb.

These were higher than levels measured in 2021.

They are also the highest ever on satellite record.

"Based on additional data sources, it is also the highest in hundreds of thousands to millions of years", the report said.

Image via EU C3S.

Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations rise and fall due to seasonal changes in the Northern Hemisphere. Concentrations rise in winter due to decay and falls in summer due to vegetation growth.

However, the general increase over time is due to man-made emissions, such as from the burning of fossil fuels.

Methane concentrations are similarly affected by variations in natural sources and sinks.

Emissions from fossil sources higher in 2022

Elaborating on the measurements, the report stated that methane growth in 2022 was "significantly higher than the average of the last 10 years".

The growth in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations were comparable to the "previous few years".

"The annual growth rate was 2.1 +/- 0.4 ppm, corresponding to approximately 0.5 per cent. This is slightly lower than in 2021 and below the average of 2.4 ppm per year since 2010", the report specified.

Additionally, the EU report noted that a separate preliminary report indicates that carbon dioxide emissions from oil, coal and natural gas were "somewhat larger" in 2022 than in 2021.

Europe heat wave

Researchers at C3S pointed out that Europe recorded its hottest summer in 2022.

The continent also recorded its second warmest year in 2022, with 2020 being the warmest.

@mothershipsg Why is there an extreme heatwave going on in Europe? #tiktoksg #heatwave2022 #heatwaveuk ♬ Oscillating Form - Charlie Ryan

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Top image via Canva