What does this mean for us and our planet? 

The report from the WMO concluded latest that the chance of the planet exceeding 1.5 degrees of warming has risen steadily since 2015 when it was close to zero.

This is agreed to be a critically important indicator of the warming threshold beyond which climate change impacts will become increasingly harmful to people and the entire planet. 

What are the chances of exceeding the warming threshold?

While previous reports had forecast just a 10% chance of exceeding the warming threshold between 2017 and 2021, this has now risen to a nearly 50% chance of exceeding the threshold between now and 2026.

The likelihood of exceeding this threshold is increasing with time, according to WMO.

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Dr Leon Hermanson, from the British Met Office, who led the report, said that a single year of exceedance above 1.5C does not mean we have breached the threshold of the Paris Agreement, but it does show we are edging closer to a situation where 1.5C degrees could be exceeded for an extended period.

The study also showed there is a 93% likelihood that temperatures in at least one year between now and 2026 will exceed those in 2016 to become the warmest year on record. 

Equally, it is 93% likely that the five-year average temperature between now and the end of 2026 will exceed the last five years.

What implications will this have on our planet?

The secretary-general of the WMO, Professor Petteri Taalas, said "for as long as we continue to emit greenhouse gases, temperatures will continue to rise".

“Alongside that, our oceans will continue to become warmer and more acidic, sea ice and glaciers will continue to melt, sea levels will continue to rise and our weather will become more extreme.

“Arctic warming is disproportionately high and what happens in the Arctic affects all of us," said Prof Taalas.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has examined the consequences for humanity of failing the keep global warming below 1.5C and concluded that the next few years are probably the most important in human history and the decisions made today about climate action are critical.

According to the report, people are already seeing the evidence of damage including more extreme weather, rising sea levels and diminishing arctic sea ice.

"Loss and damage associated with, or exacerbated by, climate change is already occurring, some of it likely irreversible for the foreseeable future," said Maxx Dilley, deputy director of climate at the WMO.

Is it too late to act?

To put it simply, it’s never too late to act. However, climate experts have emphasised how detrimental these next few years are to help our struggling planet.

If global warming can be contained at 1.5C rather than at 2C, several hundred million fewer people will be exposed to climate-related risks and susceptible to poverty by 2050. 

Heat and ozone-related morbidity and mortality would be lower too as would the risks from some vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever.

The public has a responsibility to reduce its carbon footprint and must immediately be encouraged to move to more plant-based diets, heat our homes in a more environmentally friendly way, and take up walking and cycling or driving electric cars.