Billions lost, millions impacted: Extreme weather, a growing crisis - WMO report warns

The report published this week revealed that the Earth’s climate is more out of balance than at any point in history.

 “On a day-to-day basis, our weather has become more extreme," said Celeste Saulo, WMO secretary-general.

Saulo said last year saw a devastating impact of heatwaves, wildfires, drought, tropical cyclones, storms, and flooding on the world, causing thousands of deaths, impacting millions of people, and costing billions in economic losses. 

The last ten years have experienced the hottest seasons so far, with 2025 named as the second or third hottest year on record, at about 1.43°C above the 1850-1900 average,” the report said. 

UN Secretary General António Guterres said planet Earth is being pushed beyond its limits. “Every key indicator is a red flashing flag,’ he said.

Published in observance of World Meteorological Day, the 46-page report covers global temperature, greenhouse gases, ocean heat, and sea level. It also highlighted other climate issues, including sea-ice extent, glacier mass balance, and the introduction of a new indicator for Earth’s energy imbalance.

The ocean continued to warm due to rising absorption of carbon dioxide. It has been absorbing the equivalent of about eighteen times the annual human energy used each year for the past two decades,” the report said. 

While annual sea ice extent in the Arctic was found to be at a record low, the extent of sea ice in Antarctica was the third lowest on record, and glacier melt continued unabated.

The warning from the WMO comes amid conflict between Israel and Gaza, Iran, the U.S.A., Ukraine, Russia, and Sudan. A recent study by researchers from Lancaster and Queen Mary University found that the conflict has generated approximately 33 billion tons of CO₂.