Are we entering a dangerous new phase of climate change?

If ever there were a wake-up call, this is it. The fire alarm is ringing – hell, the fire alarm is on fire. The latest data confirms that 2024 was the first year in which the average global temperature was 1.5°C higher than pre-industrial levels, breaking a totemic limit set by the Paris Agreement (see “2024 confirmed as first year to breach 1.5°C warming limit”).

That this was completely expected makes it no less shocking. In January 2023, we reported that early modelling already suggested 2024 would be the first year to pass this threshold. What is unexpected,…