Its now official: 2023 was the warmest year on record in the JRA-55 dataset, at 1.43C above preindustrial levels. It beat the prior record set in 2016 by 0.14C, and continues a rapid warming trend thats seen global temperatures rise around 1C since 1970.

This year really stands out when we look at daily temperature anomalies in the JRA-55 dataset as much warmer than any prior year, particularly during the latter half of the year.

We hear a lot of people who talk about how worried they are in the US. But then we see them buying a house bigger than they need and flying cross country for a minor holiday, like Labor Day. Most people really don't want to change their own carbon footprint. They want government to fix it.