WMO Statement on the Status of the Global Climate

WMO, working with UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme), is responsible for the periodic assessments of climate change issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). In June 1993, the 45th session of the Executive Council of WMO decided that greater efforts were needed to promote the WMO role as a provider of credible scientific information on climate and its variability and requested that arrangements be made for the regular wide distribution of WMO statements on the status of the global climate. In response to this decision, statements have been provided annually through the WCDMP.

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

See the complete series of online available WMO climate statements

Publication planning

The Statement on the State of the Global Climate will be structured in two strands including physical aspects coordinated by WMO with authors from international scientific institutions and a strand on impact aspects which will be coordinated by other United Nations agencies. The final release of the Publication is usually in March.

The planning for contribution and release of the provisional Statement is now available. An expert meeting usually takes place at WMO headquarters in November to review the key findings.

Guidance for Contribution

Special assessments

At its fifteenth session, held in Antalya, Turkey, in February 2010, the WMO Commission for Climatology decided that climate monitoring activities would henceforth include, inter alia, information gathering and analyses on extreme weather and climate events that might be considered especially relevant in terms of major societal impacts. In this respect, the Commission agreed on a new approach to facilitate, whenever possible, an appropriate scientific description of causes and effects specifically associated with these key events, as a complement to the more general Statements on the Status of the Global Climate, which WMO regularly publishes on a yearly basis in collaboration with its members.

State of the Climate in Africa: 2019 The State of the Climate in Africa report is a multi-agency report involving key international and continental organizations. It provides a snapshot of climate trends, observed high-impact events and associated risks and impacts in key sensitive sectors. The report draws attention to lessons from climate action on the continent, including areas for improvement. It identifies gaps in current climate policies and challenges facing policymakers in their efforts to create an effective and integrated climate policy that contributes to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Paris Agreement and the Agenda 2063 of the African Union.
The Climate in Africa: 2013 In Africa in 2013, the critical weather and climate trends of the last decades continued: it was one of the warmest years on the continent since at least 1950, with temperatures above average in most regions. Precipitation at the continental scale was near average. But several extreme events hit the region. The floods that hit Mozambique in January were among the 10 most severe in the world that year, based on the number of deaths. In contrast, the rains in Namibia and neighboring countries fell well below normal, leading to a severe drought.
The Global Climate 2001-2010: a decade of climate extremes The report analysed global and regional temperatures and precipitation, as well as extreme events The 100-page report and an executive summary, incorporating findings from a unique survey of 139 National Meteorological and Hydrological Services and socio-economic data and analysis from several UN agencies and partners. Contributions from WMO Members
Assessment of the observed extreme conditions during late boreal winter 2011/2012 During late January and early February 2012 extreme winter conditions were recorded in Europe and Asia. After a mild December and early January the situation changed abruptly in the second half of January. Extreme low temperatures were recorded in east and central Asia, in Central, Western and Southern Europe. These conditions were found to be associated with largescale atmospheric disturbances connected to the Arctic Oscillation. The cold wave finally started weakening in the first half of February.
A case study of the boreal winter 2009/2010 During the period from December 2009 to February 2010 extreme conditions were recorded in many places. Strong negative temperature anomalies and heavy and prolonged snow conditions occurred over Europe, the Russian Federation and parts of North America, particularly the United States, and Asia. Other large areas in the northern hemisphere recorded above normal temperatures for the season. This was the case particularly in the Arctic region and Canada, where temperatures reached +6°C above the long-term average in some locations. This Assessment provides an insight into what happened.

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