January 2025 sets record as the hottest month, C3S says

Representing "the 18th month in the last nineteen months for which the global-average surface air temperature was more than 1.5°C above the pre-industrial level," it was 0.79°C above the 1991-2020 average.

According to C3S, temperatures increased 1.61°C above pre-industrial levels between February 2024 and January 2025. Land temperatures in January were 2.51°C higher than the average for Europe, making it the second warmest month on record since 2020.

In other regions, the records show temperatures rising in southern and eastern Europe, including western Russia, northeast and northwest Canada, Alaska, Siberia, southern South America, Africa, and much of Australia and Antarctica.

However, some regions experienced temperatures below the average. "In contrast, they were below average over Iceland, the United Kingdom and Ireland, northern France, and northern Fennoscandia. Temperatures were most notably below average over the United States and the easternmost regions of Russia, Chukotka and Kamchatka. The Arabian Peninsula and mainland Southeast Asia also had below-average temperatures," the report reads.

These regional differences were reflected in the hydrological conditions. Heavy precipitation caused floods in parts of western Europe, such as Scandinavia, Italy, and the Baltic nations. In other places, areas of Alaska, Canada, Russia, Australia, Africa, and Brazil experienced flooding as a result of the high rains.

“Conversely, drier than average conditions established in northern UK and Ireland, eastern Spain, and north of the Black Sea. Drier than average conditions established in southwestern United States and northern Mexico, northern Africa, the Middle East, across Central Asia and in eastern China as well as in much of southern Africa, southern South America and Australia,” the organization highlights.

Sea surface temperatures also remained high, with the average being 20.78°C. This data makes the second-highest on record for the month, which is just 0.19°C below the January 2024 record.

“SSTs were below average over the central equatorial Pacific, but close to or above average over the eastern equatorial Pacific, suggesting a slowing or stalling of the move towards La Niña conditions. SSTs remained unusually high in many other ocean basins and seas,” report notes.

Opposite to the SSTs, Arctic sea ice reached its lowest recorded extent in January. Data revealed a 6% drop below average, closely matching the figures from January 2018. Meanwhile, Antarctic sea ice extent was 5% below average, relatively near the norm compared to 2023–2024.

“In the Arctic region, sea ice concentration anomalies were well below average in the eastern Canadian sector, including Hudson Bay and the Labrador Sea, and in the northern Barents Sea. In the Antarctic region, sea ice concentrations were above average in the Amundsen Sea and generally mixed in other ocean sectors,” the organization shared.

Earlier, Kazinform correspondent published an exclusive interview with World Bank experts, during which they discussed how climate policy can drive economic growth in Kazakhstan, the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, and the role of modern technologies in achieving climate goals.