Overview

• May’s global mean air temperature reached 15.79°C, making it the second warmest May since records began and 0.53°C above the 1991–2020 average.
• The global mean temperature of 1.40°C above pre-industrial levels ended a 21-month streak above 1.5°C, marking the first dip below this threshold in nearly two years.
• Sea surface temperatures hit 20.79°C in May, representing the second-highest level recorded for that month on record.
• Antarctic sea ice fell to 9% below average, ranking as the fifth-lowest May extent on record.
• The World Meteorological Organization assigns an 80% probability to a new global temperature record within five years and Copernicus warns the 1.5°C limit is likely to be exceeded again soon.