The Latest Breaking News from WMO

Wildfires are releasing a "witches' brew" of pollutants that can end up wrecking air quality a continent away from the blaze, the UN's weather and climate agency said Friday.

Wildfires are releasing a "witches' brew" of pollutants that can end up wrecking air quality a continent away from the blaze, the UN's weather and climate agency said Friday.

Record temperatures come amid scientists’ warnings that climate change is causing more frequent extreme weather events.

Experts say hotter conditions hinder long-term health and economic security as workers increasingly suffer from conditions such as heatstroke.

France, Spain, Greece and Turkey are all battling wildfires as a new heatwave brings record temperatures surpassing 42 degrees Celsius.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) certified a new record for the longest lightning strike ever documented, measuring 829 kilometers, using data collected during a thunderstorm in October 2017.

The 2017 flash, which stretched from east Texas to near Kansas City, beat the previous record by almost 50 miles

This year, Australia has experienced record-breaking floods, tropical cyclones, heatwaves on land and in the ocean, drought, coral bleaching, coastal erosion and devastating algal blooms. Over the past five years, insured losses from extreme events have risen to A$4.5 billion annually – more than double the 30-year average.

Germany faced forest fire warnings, Spain saw rising interest in Nordic vacations, and Poland experienced historic river drying as massive heatwaves persisted over the past period.

The World Meteorological Organization maintains a list of 21 hurricane names for each year. In especially busy years, a supplemental list is used.

Nearly 40 million square kilometres of ocean experienced marine heatwaves in the western Pacific region in 2024, a UN climate and weather agency says.