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Revised historical record sharpens perspective on global warming

An analysis has revealed that global temperatures were warmer in the early twentieth century than was inferred from existing data sets. Revising these estimates could improve our understanding of global temperature change.
  1. Timothy J. Osborn

    1. Timothy J. Osborn is in the Climatic Research Unit, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK.

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  2. John J. Kennedy

    1. John J. Kennedy is an independent researcher in Verdun, France.

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Global average temperature is one of the few scientific numbers that regularly make headlines. Indeed, it has a central role in the 2015 Paris climate agreement, which aims to limit the increase in this temperature to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels. Accurate estimates of how the global temperature has changed over time are therefore crucial for tracking efforts to mitigate the threat of climate change. Writing in Nature, Sippel et al.1 provide evidence that existing estimates for between 1900 and 1930 are too low, owing to an unresolved systematic error in ocean surface temperatures. Correcting the record would improve researchers’ understanding of long-term temperature change and its causes.

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Nature 635, 560-561 (2024)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-024-03551-7

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Competing Interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

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