April 2025 becomes second-warmest April on record, global temperatures remain above normal

April 2025 has officially gone down as the second-warmest April ever recorded globally, just behind April 2024, according to new data from the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service. The month registered an average surface air temperature of 14.96°C, which is 0.60°C higher than the 1991–2020 April average and 1.51°C above the pre-industrial average (1850–1900).

This marks the 21st time in the past 22 months that global temperatures have exceeded the critical 1.5°C threshold set under the 2015 Paris Agreement – a benchmark aimed at avoiding the most severe impacts of climate change.

Although April 2025 was marginally cooler than April 2024 by 0.07°C, it remained warmer than the third-highest April on record in 2016. The 12-month period from May 2024 to April 2025 was 1.58°C warmer than pre-industrial levels, raising further alarm among climate scientists.

The trend underscores the continued impact of human-driven climate change, largely fuelled by fossil fuel consumption. Scientists warn that without significant and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, the planet may be headed toward increasingly severe weather events, rising sea levels, and ecosystem disruptions.