Hottest January on record called ‘terrifying’ by scientists after defying expectation 

Your support helps us to tell the storySupport NowFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Scientists have warned that “dangerous climate breakdown” has arrived after the warmest January ever was recorded globally, defying expectations that 2025 might be cooler than previous years.The average temperature last month stood at 13.23C, which is 0.79C above the 1991 to 2020 average for January and 1.75C above the pre-industrial level, according to European space agency Copernicus.January 2025 is the 18th month in the last 19 months which saw the global average surface air temperature more than 1.5C above the pre-industrial level.It comes against a backdrop of new US president Donald Trump vowing to end previous leader Joe Biden’s policies of “climate extremism”. This is despite 2024 being registered as the world’s hottest on record, crossing the 1.5C threshold initially agreed in the 2015 Paris Agreement.Emeritus professor of geophysical and climate hazards at UCL, Bill McGuire, called the data “astonishing and, frankly terrifying”.LA was hit by wildfires in the hottest January on record globally (Reuters)He continued: “On the basis of the Valencia floods and apocalyptic LA wildfires, I don’t think there can be any doubt that dangerous, all-pervasive, climate breakdown has arrived.“Yet emissions continue to rise, while fossil fuel corporations seek to expand operations. Grim doesn’t even begin to describe our prospects.”Scientists expected the emergence of La Niña – a climate pattern of cooling conditions in the tropical Pacific – would slow down record-breaking global warming after the recent El Niño phenomenon led to the warming of surface waters.Climate scientist Professor Chris Brierley told The Independent: “I don’t know why the La Niña had so little effect – it’s taken me and the community by surprise. We’ll get the research models out now to try and understand it, but that won’t have answers for a few months at the earliest.”He added: “Irrespective of why it happened, it’s scary and highlights the urgency of taking serious climate action.”Damage to a building during Storm Eowyn w