As COP31 opened in Antalya, Turkiye, the WMO warned that the world is entering a more dangerous period of climate extremes, with global temperatures from January through September 2026 averaging about 1.47°C above pre-industrial levels.

The findings were released ahead of climate talks in Turkey running from November 9 to 20; the EU’s Copernicus climate service said 2026 was all but certain to become the second calendar year after 2024 to exceed 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

The WMO forecast that El Niño could become very strong in December and persist into early 2027, potentially adding to global warming and extreme weather.

Greenhouse-gas concentrations reached observed record highs in 2025 and continued rising in 2026; since 1750, carbon dioxide has increased 53 per cent, methane 167 per cent and nitrous oxide 26 per cent.

Earth’s energy imbalance—the gap between incoming solar energy and heat released into space—reached its highest level since systematic monitoring began, as greenhouse gases trap more heat.

The ocean absorbs around 90 per cent of excess heat trapped by greenhouse gases, and ocean heat content reached a record in 2025, marking the 10th consecutive year of record ocean warmth.

Glaciers lost more than 400 gigatonnes of ice during the 2025 hydrological year, equivalent to about 1 millimetre of sea-level rise; it was the fourth consecutive year of losses across all 19 glacierised regions.

Antarctic sea ice reached its third-lowest annual maximum on record in 2026, while the Arctic maximum was the lowest or second-lowest; about 42% of assessed land area had below-normal water storage in 2025.

Rising temperatures are intensifying heatwaves, droughts and heavy rainfall, putting food supplies, water availability and human health at greater risk.

UN climate chief Simon Stiell described climate change as a global health crisis, citing extreme heat, pollution and disasters that strain health systems; hundreds of millions of people in South Asia faced extreme heat.

An estimated 146.5 million people in India faced extreme heat during an April 2026 heatwave, while preliminary estimates linked more than 30,000 additional deaths in Europe to heatwaves, droughts and wildfires.

A Centre for Science and Environment report said India experienced extreme weather on 92% of days during the first nine months of 2026, including heat and cold waves, storms, heavy rain, floods and landslides.