Various parts of the world have been experiencing heatwaves this and in the previous weeks of July and on Thursday 6th July, 2023 the EU’s climate monitoring service said that the world had experienced its hottest June on record ever.?

The southern US has been sweltering under an intense heat dome in recent weeks, including on the national 4 July holiday. In parts of China, an enduring heatwave has continued, with temperatures reaching above 35C and one part of China hitting a prlimary reading of over 50 degrees Celsius.

Overall, one of the largest contributors to the week’s heat records is an exceptionally mild winter in the Antarctic. Parts of the continent and nearby ocean were 10-20C (18-36F) higher than averages from 1979 to 2000.

Scientists agree climate change is reaching uncharted territory and that the increased heat from anthropogenic global heating combined with the return of El Niño would lead to more record-breaking temperatures this summer.

“Chances are that the month of July will be the warmest ever, and with it the hottest month ever … ‘ever’ meaning since the Eemian [interglacial period], which is some 120,000 years ago,” Dr Karsten Haustein, a research fellow in atmospheric radiation at Leipzig University, said.

I think this should be a clear wake up call to us all that things are currently far from normal and will only get worse as we continue business as usual; spewing out ever increasing levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases (GHG) into the Earth’s atmosphere.

The records broken and continuing to be broken in recent weeks, should show we are indeed in a clear emergency/crisis, with the continued lack of meaningful action similar to an out of control train that we urgently need to pull the emergency brakes on… ?