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EU scientists predict 2024 to be hottest year on record
By Francesca Hangeior
The European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service disclosed on Thursday that year 2024 is “virtually certain” to surpass 2023 as the world’s warmest since records began.
The data was released ahead of next week’s UN COP29 climate summit in Azerbaijan, where countries will try to reach an agreement on a significant increase in funding to tackle climate change.
C3S stated that from January to October, the average global temperature was so high that 2024 was certain to be the world’s hottest year – unless the temperature anomaly for the rest of the year dropped to near zero.
“The fundamental, underlying cause of this year’s record is climate change,” C3S Director Carlo Buontempo made this disclosure to journalists on Thursday.
“The climate is warm, generally. It’s warming on all continents, in all ocean basins. So we are bound to see these records being broken,” he said.
The scientists also said that 2024 will be the first year in which the planet’s temperature is more than 1.5°C hotter than in the 1850-1900 pre-industrial period when humans began burning fossil fuels on an industrial scale.
Carbon dioxide emissions from burning coal, oil, and gas are the main causes of global warming.
A climate scientist at the public research university ETH Zurich, Sonia Seneviratne, said she was not surprised by the milestone.
She urged governments at COP29 to agree on stronger action to reduce their economies’ reliance on CO2-emitting fossil fuels.
“The limits set in the Paris Agreement are starting to crumble due to the too-slow pace of climate action across the world,” Seneviratne said.
Countries agreed in the 2015 Paris Agreement to try to prevent global warming from surpassing 1.5°C (2.7°F) to avoid its worst consequences.
The world has not yet breached that target – which refers to an average global temperature of 1.5°C over decades – but C3S now expects the world to exceed the Paris goal around 2030.
“It’s basically just around the corner now,” Buontempo said.
Every fraction of a temperature increase exacerbates extreme weather.
In October, catastrophic flash floods killed hundreds of people in Spain, record wildfires ravaged Peru, and flooding in Bangladesh destroyed more than one million tonnes of rice, sending food prices soaring.
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See Photos of World’s Tallest and Shortest Women Meet for Afternoon Tea in London
The world’s tallest woman and the world’s shortest woman met for the first time this week, sipping tea from china cups — and bonding over what they have in common while celebrating their differences.
Jyoti Amge, shortest woman, and Rumeysa Gelgi, tallest woman, meet for the first time and share afternoon tea
Rumeysa Gelgi, from Turkey, stands at 7 feet and 0.7 inches, while Jyoti Amge, from India, is 2 feet and 0.7 inches.
Jyoti Amge, shortest woman, and Rumeysa Gelgi, tallest woman, meet for the first time and share afternoon tea
Jyoti Amge, shortest woman, and Rumeysa Gelgi, tallest woman, meet for the first time and share afternoon tea
Jyoti Amge, shortest woman, and Rumeysa Gelgi, tallest woman, meet for the first time and share afternoon tea
“You’re so beautiful,” said Gelgi, 27. “Thank you — you too,” replied Amge, 30.
Their meeting, over afternoon tea at London’s Savoy Hotel on Tuesday, came ahead of Guinness World Records Day, which is held annually in November to mark record-breaking achievements and encourage people to attempt records. The pair have been honored as “World Record icons” in the 70th anniversary edition of the Guinness World Records book.
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“Meeting Jyoti for the first time was wonderful,” Gelgi said in a release Wednesday. “She’s the most gorgeous lady. I was waiting to meet her for a long time.”
Gelgi said the pair bonded over their love for makeup, jewelry and doing their nails.
Video footage showed them sitting down for tea, cakes and sandwiches stacked next to them, with the London Eye visible from the window.
Amge said in the release that she was “so happy to look up” and see the world’s tallest woman, whom she called “good-natured.” She added that it was difficult at times for the pair to make eye contact “due to our height difference.”
“Guinness World Records is all about celebrating differences,” its editor in chief, Craig Glenday, said in a statement ahead of Guinness World Record Day, which is on Thursday.
“By bringing together these two amazing, iconic women, they can share their perspectives on life with each other and, also, with us,” Glenday said.
Gelgi’s record-breaking height is due to a rare genetic condition called Weaver syndrome, which causes rapid growth, according to the National Organization for Rare Disorders.
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The primary symptom is growth and bone development that occurs faster than usual, making those affected taller than average. People with Weaver syndrome may have rigid muscles and difficulty extending their elbows or knees.
Gelgi used a walking aid for support during the pair’s meeting. Her case of Weaver syndrome was the 27th ever diagnosed and the first in Turkey, according to Guinness World Records.
Weaver syndrome is generally caused by changes in the EZH2 gene, according to the NORD, though the organization notes that some people with Weaver syndrome do not have a mutation in the gene.
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Amge, an actor who played the character of Ma Petite in the television series “American Horror Story,” has a genetic growth disorder that occurs in the early stages of fetal development, known as achondroplasia.
According to Johns Hopkins, the condition causes shorter bones, abnormally shaped bones and shorter stature. While the genetic defect can be passed from parent to child, in about 80 percent of cases, achondroplasia results from a spontaneous mutation that occurs in the developing embryo.
On Thursday, Gelgi shared photos on Instagram of the two exploring London despite the cold weather, posing side by side in front of Tower Bridge.
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