2022 Provisional State of the Climate Report

• The provisional State of the Global Climate report, 2022, was recently published by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
• In April 2023, the complete and final report is anticipated to be released.

What are the Report's Highlights?

Greenhouse gas concentrations rising:

• Carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (NO2) concentrations—the three principal greenhouse gases—were all at record highs in 2021.
• In fact, methane emissions surged at the quickest rate ever. Methane is 25 times more powerful than carbon dioxide at causing global warming.
• Countries made commitments to reduce global methane emissions by at least 30% by 2030 at the Glasgow climate change summit.

Temperature:

• According to estimates, the average global temperature in 2022 will be 1.15 °C higher than it was between 1850 and 1900.
• Most likely, the eight warmest years on record will occur from 2015 to 2022.
• La Nia conditions, which are characterized by a cooling of sea-surface waters in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, have dominated since late 2020 and are predicted to last through the end of 2022.
• La Nia has continued for the previous two years, keeping global temperatures relatively moderate, albeit higher than the last large La Nia in 2011.

Ice & Glaciers:

• In 2022, glacier melt records in the European Alps were broken. The Alps had average thickness losses of between 3 and over 4 meters, which is significantly higher than the previous record year of 2003.
• Initial data show that 6% of the glacier ice volume in Switzerland was lost between 2021 and 2022.
• Even at the highest measurement locations, no snow survived the summer for the first time ever, and no fresh ice accumulated as a result.

Sea Level Rise:

• Over the 30 years (1993–2022) of the satellite altimeter record, the global mean sea level has increased by an estimated 3.4 0.3 mm per year.
• Between 1993 and 2002 and 2013 and 2022, the rate doubled, and between January 2021 and August 2022, the sea level rose by nearly 5 mm.
• 90% of the heat accumulated from greenhouse gas emissions by humans is stored in the ocean.
• In 2021, the ocean's upper 2000 meters continued to warm to unprecedented levels.
• At least one marine heatwave affected 55% of the ocean's surface in 2022.
• In comparison, a marine cold spell affected only 22% of the ocean's surface. Unlike cold waves, marine heatwaves are occurring more frequently.

Extreme weather:

• Rainfall in East Africa has been below average for the longest stretch of four consecutive rainy seasons (40 years), and there are signs that the current season may also be dry.
• Massive floods occurred in Pakistan in 2022 as a result of record-breaking rain in July and August.
• The intense heatwave that both India and Pakistan experienced in March and April was closely followed by the flooding.
• The northern hemisphere's major regions were unusually hot and dry.
• China experienced the second-dryest summer on record and the largest and longest heatwave in the country's history.
• Numerous periods of high heat wracked large portions of Europe.
• On July 19, 2022, the temperature in the United Kingdom broke a previous record and reached greater than 40°C for the first time.

What actions have been taken to combat climate change?

National:

National Action Plan on Climate change (NAPCC)

• India unveiled its National Action Plan to Combat Climate Change to counter the growing challenges of climate change (NAPCC). There are 8 sub-missions inside it, such as the National Solar Mission, the National Water Mission etc
• India Cooling Action Plan: It offers a comprehensive strategy for cooling and related issues, such as lowering cooling demand. By lowering emissions, this would aid in the fight against global warming.

Global: The Paris Accord:

• It aims to keep the increase in global temperatures from pre-industrial times "far below" 2°C while "pursuing measures" to keep it at 1.5°C.

U.N. SDGs:

• These 17 overarching objectives will help civilization flourish sustainably. Goal 13 specifically focuses on combating climate change.
• At the COP26 meetings in 2021, 197 nations eventually agreed to accept the Glasgow Pact.
• It has stressed the importance of taking more decisive action in the coming decade to meet the 1.5-degree target.

The WMO State of the Global Climate report is what?

• The sixth IPCC Assessment Report, which gave the most recent long assessment cycle, is supplemented by the report on an annual basis.
• Using important climate indicators and reporting on extreme occurrences and their effects, the report lends an authoritative voice to the current state of the climate.

About The World Meteorological Organization (WMO): An intergovernmental organization, the WMO has 192 Member States and Territories as members.

• India is a WMO member.

• The International Meteorological Organization (IMO), which was founded following the Vienna International Meteorological Congress in 1873, is where it got its start.
• The WMO became the United Nations specialized organization for meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology, and allied geophysical sciences on March 23, 1950, when the WMO Convention was ratified.
• The WMO's main office is in Geneva, Switzerland.

Way Forward

• The emphasis should be on innovative ideas and policies that can drastically alter how resources are created and used.