2026 Predicted to Be Hottest Year on Record
Scientists predict 2026 hottest year on record as climate talks begin
Scientists forecast that 2026 will likely become the hottest year on record, surpassing 2024's previous mark. Berkeley Earth, an independent U.S. research group, expressed 95 percent confidence in the prediction with two months of data still pending.
The forecast coincides with the opening of COP31, the UN climate summit now underway in Turkey. Recent climate impacts have been severe across attending nations, including widespread European wildfires and a glacier collapse in Nepal that killed over 1,000 people.
Dr. Robert Rohde of Berkeley Earth attributed rising temperatures to increased atmospheric carbon dioxide, primarily from fossil fuel combustion. He warned of potential for "much larger and much more dramatic changes" ahead. The EU's Copernicus climate service confirmed October 2026 as the hottest month on record.
