Earth hit record heat levels in 2025 as UN says warming will last thousands of years

The World Meteorological Organisation warned Monday that Earth's heat-trapping atmospheric levels reached a record in 2025, with warming impacts expected to persist for thousands of years. The UN agency reported that 11 of the 12 warmest years on record have occurred between 2015 and 2025, a pattern that demonstrates accelerating global warming. The findings underscore the lag between current emissions and their climatic effects—even if greenhouse gas releases stopped today, warming would continue for centuries due to heat already trapped in the atmosphere. The report adds pressure on governments ahead of ongoing climate negotiations to implement deeper emissions cuts. The data suggests that current warming trajectories will shape global climate conditions far beyond this century.