Overview

• The world’s remaining carbon budget for a 50% chance of staying below 1.5°C stands at 130 billion tonnes of CO₂ from 2025 and will be used up in just over three years at current rates.
• Global greenhouse gas emissions hit a record 53.6 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalent in 2024, driven by fossil fuel combustion and deforestation.
• Human-driven warming has accelerated to 0.27°C per decade from 2015 to 2024, with average temperatures peaking at 1.52°C above pre-industrial levels last year.
• The Earth’s energy imbalance is climbing, steering excess heat into oceans, which have contributed to a 26 mm rise in sea levels between 2019 and 2024.
• Scientists warn that only rapid and deep cuts in emissions this decade can alter the trajectory of warming and reduce the risk of extreme climate events and coastal flooding.