1 minute read / January 10, 2024
The year 2023 has replaced 2016 as the warmest calendar year on record. According to the ERA5 dataset, the global-average temperature for 2023 was 14.98°C, 0.17°C higher than recorded for 2016.
The year-to-year increase in global-average temperature was exceptionally large from 2022 to 2023. It follows a transition from three years of La Niña in 2020–2022 to El Niño conditions in 2023, although other factors appear to have also played a role. Further discussion is given in the section on sea surface temperature as well as in the highlight box: Was the unusual warmth of 2023 expected.
The evolution of the daily global-average temperature shows that 2023 is noteworthy for the occurrence of the highest global temperatures on record, both in absolute terms, during July, and relative to the annual cycle, during November. Almost all days from the beginning of June were the warmest in the ERA5 data record for that particular day of the year.
