Euronews.green reports that the findings made by experts at C3S are based on computer-generated analysis of data in the atmospheric, land and ocean climate environments. The reported average air temperature for January was 13.14 degrees Celsius, which is 0.7 degrees warmer than the average of 1991-2020, while also being 0.12 degrees Celsius warmer than January 2020, the previous warmest first month.

This, climate experts say, is also the eighth warmest month in a row on a global scale.

Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of C3S, said that "2024 starts with another record-breaking month - not only is it the warmest January on record but we have also just experienced a 12-month period of more than 1.5C above the pre-industrial reference period."

"Rapid reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are the only way to stop global temperatures increasing", she added.

In Europe, temperatures in the month of January varied from significantly lower than those between 1991-2020 for the Nordic states, to way higher in the Southern part of the continent.

While the El Niño warming phenomenon started to lower in intensity over the equatorial Pacific, marine air temperatures remained unusually high, in general.

The average global sea surface temperature also reached a new record for January, at 20.97 degrees Celsius. The first month of 2024 also meant more humidity in Europe, with the north and the southwest of the continent being battered with more storms than usual.

Spain, Ireland and most of Scandinavia were hit with drier-than-normal weather, similar to Chile and Australia. For the latter two countries, this had severe consequences on the environment, as it led to dangerous wildfires.