State of the Global Climate report issued today as “Earth’s climate swings increasingly out of balance”.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reports that Earth’s climate is now more out of balance than ever recorded, with rising greenhouse gases driving warming, ice loss, and long-lasting impacts for centuries. WMO’s flagship State of the Global Climate report was released today, World Meteorological Day, which has the theme ‘Observing Today, Protecting Tomorrow’. The State of the Global Climate 2025 report includes scientific contributions from dozens of WMO Members, partners and scientists, including Ireland.

“Observations across Ireland and globally continue to show a climate system under pressure, with records being broken not as outliers but as part of an ongoing trend that is reshaping environmental baselines and risk levels,” said Dr Sarah Gallagher, Head of Observations Division, Met Éireann.

“WMO’s State of the Global Climate report seeks to inform decision-making. It is in keeping with the theme of World Meteorological Day because when we observe today, we don’t just predict the weather, we protect tomorrow. Tomorrow’s people. Tomorrow’s planet,” said WMO Secretary General, Celeste Saulo.

Key Global Findings:

Greenhouse Gases continued rising, with 2024 at a 2 million-year high and the largest CO₂ increase since 1957 driven by fossil emissions and weaker carbon sinks.
Ocean heat content (0-2000 m) reached a record high in 2025, surpassing 2024, with new records set every year since 2017.
Sea level in 2025 remained near the 2024 record, ~11 cm above 1993.
Continued decline in ocean surface pH, with levels likely unprecedented in at least 26,000 years.
Glacier mass loss from reference glaciers was 5th worst loss on record.
The 2025 average Arctic sea ice extent was the lowest or 2nd lowest on record.
Climate driven food insecurity is a growing risk, with cascading impacts on stability, migration, and biosecurity.
More than one third of the global workforce, about 1.2 billion people, experience periods of occupational heat exposure each year.

Annual global mean temperature anomalies relative to a pre-industrial (1850–1900) baseline. Data are from the datasets indicated in the legend.

Island of Ireland mean temperature anomalies relative to the 1961-1990 baseline together with 5- year rolling averages for Ireland and Global data

Why do we need observations?

Observations power every response and every decision. Weather and climate data help us understand how Ireland’s climate is changing and improve the accuracy of forecasts and warnings. Long term climate records show how temperature, rainfall and storms are changing, helping us prepare for dangerous and high impact weather.

WMO State of Climate report confirms 2015-2025 hottest 11 years on record.
Met Éireann’s analysis confirms that for Ireland the hottest 11 years on record were also 2015-2025.
2025 was the second or third hottest year on record globally.
2025 was the second warmest year on record in Ireland, with an average of 11.14 °C.
The last four years (2022 to 2025) are the four warmest years on record in Ireland.

The 2025 Past Weather and Climate Statement is available at www.met.ie/annual-climate-statement-for-2025.

Provisional top 10 Warmest Years for Ireland (1900-2025 inclusive)

How does the observing system work?

Ireland’s climate record is built from a combination of national surface observation networks and internationally shared data streams coordinated through the World Meteorological Organization. These include land stations measuring temperature, precipitation, wind, and pressure, alongside upper air soundings that capture the vertical structure of the atmosphere.

Storm Éowyn produced the highest winds ever recorded in Ireland, with gusts up to 184 km/h at Mace Head.
The highest temperature of the year (including all other official Met Éireann stations) was 32.2 °C, reported at Connemara National Park on Sunday 13th July 2025
Temperatures as low as −7.6 °C were recorded at Athenry during January.

The collection, sharing, processing, and delivery of weather, climate, and hydrological data is coordinated globally through programmes such as the World Meteorological Organization’s World Weather Watch. In Ireland, weather and climate observations are fundamental to our work, from daily forecasts to long term climate tracking, all maintained by Met Éireann.

A nationwide network of stations, from synoptic sites to hundreds of rain gauges, captures Ireland’s highly variable weather and feeds directly into forecasts and climate insights. High above Valentia, weather balloons launched twice daily track changes through the atmosphere, helping forecasters understand incoming Atlantic systems before they arrive. Every observation supports the delivery of forecasts and timely warnings, helping communities prepare for high impact weather.

Met Éireann’s TRANSLATE project delivers Ireland’s first standardised climate projections and underpins the National Framework for Climate Services, turning observations into practical climate information that influences long-term decision making across multiple sectors.

Alongside global weather operations, the Global Atmosphere Watch tracks greenhouse gases, air pollutants, and the condition of the ozone layer to monitor changes in the atmosphere. At Mace Head Atmospheric Research Station, Met Éireann monitors greenhouse gases, aerosols, and air pollutants as part of international networks, providing long term observations of atmospheric composition over the North Atlantic.

Closing the gap in observations

Strengthening and expanding global observations is essential to improve forecasts, warnings, and climate resilience worldwide. For Ireland, gaps in global observations matter as our weather develops over the Atlantic.

Annual rainfall ranged from 804.2 mm at Dublin Airport to 1809.4 mm at Valentia Observatory, showing large regional variation and the importance of network coverage.
The number of rain days ranged from 184 days at Dublin Airport to 258 days at Newport.
Annual rainfall varied from 86% to 124% of the long term average across different stations.

Protecting Tomorrow

Accurate observations, strong forecasting, new technology, and investment in people all work together to reduce risk and protect lives, economies, and the planet into the future. For Ireland, this means improving forecasts, enhancing warning systems and strengthening planning as the country becomes warmer, wetter, and more exposed to extreme rainfall and sea level rise.

Ireland experienced five named storms in 2025. Starting with Éowyn in January with recording breaking winds, Floris in August, Amy in October, Claudia in November and ending with Bram in December.
The highest daily rainfall of 2025 was 66.9 mm at Johnstown Castle on Friday 14 November during Storm Claudia. The highest climatological daily (09-09 UTC) rainfall of was 108.4 mm at Cloone Lake, Co Kerry on Saturday 6 September 2025.

Observations from years like 2025 support better forecasts and timely warnings for impactful weather, helping protect lives and infrastructure. Long term climate records guide decisions as Ireland changes and becomes more exposed to extreme weather in the future.