Extreme weather may intensify, global agency warns

A World Meteorological Organization report says Earth's climate is out of balance and that ocean warming and sea-level rise are effectively locked in for centuries.

A new World Meteorological Organization report says the global climate is out of balance and that linked changes will increase severe weather. WMO Secretary‑General Celeste Saulo is quoted saying human activities are increasingly disrupting the natural equilibrium and that societies will live with the consequences for hundreds to thousands of years. The report emphasizes that some ocean changes are effectively irreversible on centennial to millennial timescales. Key facts: - Officials say human activities are disrupting the natural equilibrium and that the consequences will persist for centuries. - The report describes changes in ocean warming and deep ocean pH as irreversible on centennial to millennial timescales. - More than 91 percent of the excess heat trapped by the climate system is stored in the ocean, and the rate of ocean warming has more than doubled in the past 20 years compared with the previous 40 years. Summary: The report frames key climate indicators as being at elevated levels and indicates long-term ocean changes are already set in. Undetermined at this time.