WMO has confirmed continuation of warming trend over the past few decades, with 14 of the 15 hottest years on record occurring this century.

Record ocean heat, high land-surface temperatures and devastating flooding were some of the defining characteristics of the global climate in 2014, which was nominally the warmest year on record, although by a very small margin, according to a detailed analysis by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

The WMO Statement on the Status of the Global Climate in 2014 confirmed the continuation of the warming trend over the past few decades, with 14 of the 15 hottest years on record occurring this century. The report gave details of national and regional temperatures and precipitation, tropical cyclones, sea level rise and sea ice extent. It included an analysis from the Met Office in the United Kingdom on the human influence on climate, which significantly increased the likelihood of the observed record-breaking temperatures in the United Kingdom in 2014.