2025 ranks among the three warmest years ever recorded globally, according to a new scientific analysis, with planetary warming intensifying due to human activity and continued emissions from fossil fuels.
Researchers from World Weather Attribution note that this marks the first time the global average temperature, measured over a three-year period, has exceeded the 1.5°C threshold above pre-industrial levels. This limit had been identified under the Paris Agreement as critical to avoiding the most severe impacts of climate change.
Despite the presence of La Niña, which typically has a cooling effect on global temperatures, heat levels remained exceptionally high. Scientists attribute this trend to the ongoing combustion of oil, natural gas, and coal, which releases large volumes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
“If we do not very quickly stop burning fossil fuels, it will be extremely difficult to keep global warming within safe limits,” warned Friederike Otto, co-founder of World Weather Attribution.
A year marked by extreme events
The analysis records 157 extreme weather events during 2025, causing hundreds of deaths, extensive economic damage, and emergency declarations across multiple countries. Of these, 22 cases were examined in depth.
Heatwaves emerged as the deadliest extreme phenomenon of the year, with some found to be up to ten times more likely than a decade ago as a direct result of climate change.
Prolonged drought also contributed to large-scale wildfires in countries such as Greece and Turkey, while torrential rains and flooding in Mexico left dozens dead or missing. Across Asia, powerful monsoons and typhoons forced millions of people to flee their homes.
Limits of adaptation and political inertia
Scientists caution that both the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events are beginning to exceed the adaptive capacity of many societies, particularly poorer or more vulnerable countries. At the same time, international climate negotiations continue to move slowly, with no clear commitment to an immediate phase-out of fossil fuels.
While a temporary overshoot of the 1.5°C threshold is now widely acknowledged, experts stress that emissions reductions can still limit the most destructive consequences.
“Progress exists, but it is not enough,” researchers conclude, describing 2025 as yet another stark warning signal in the escalating climate crisis.
Source: Associated Press