Yes, we resorted to a Britney Spears reference, but this isn’t cute anymore. The World Meteorological Organization confirmed that 2025 was the second-hottest year on record, with average global temperatures reaching 1.47°C above pre-industrial levels. Only 2024’s record-breaking heat was worse.

The past 11 years are now the warmest 11 years in the 176-year history of temperature records.

What is especially concerning about 2025 is that it occurred during La Niña, a natural Pacific cooling pattern that usually brings lower temperatures. This time, it did not help. Climate scientist James Hansen reportsthat global warming is now speeding up by 0.31°C per decade, and he predicts we will pass the +1.7°C mark by 2027.

For the first time, the average temperature from 2023 to 2025 was higher than the 1.5°C limit set by the Paris Agreement. Scientists say this threshold is crucial to prevent severe and lasting climate impacts for people alive today. In 2024, atmospheric CO₂ reached 423.9 parts per million, which is 53% higher than pre-industrial levels.

Meanwhile, the cascade of extreme weather continues: heat waves are now 10 times more likely than a decade ago, Arctic sea ice hit its lowest winter maximum on record, wildfires are devastating Greece and Turkey, and typhoons are forcing mass evacuations across Southeast Asia.

“Each year above 1.5 degrees will hammer economies, deepen inequalities and inflict irreversible damage,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo.

The measurements are undeniable. The data cannot be denied. Still, the United States government under the Trump administration is suppressing climate information and reversing clean energy policies to support coal, oil, and gas. COP30 ended without a clear promise to phase out fossil fuels.

As the planet cooks in industrial era pollution, playing politics with climate science is beyond irresponsible. It’s dangerous.