Chinese weather data shows that 2024 was the warmest year for the country since comparable records began more than six decades ago, the second consecutive year in which milestones were broken.
The national average temperature stood at 10.92 degrees Celsius (51.66 Fahrenheit) last year, more than 1 degree higher than in 2023, according to Weather.com.cn, a service portal run by the China Meteorological Administration.
The 10 warmest years since records began in 1961 were all in the 21st century, according to the services portal.
For densely populated Shanghai, China’s financial center, 2024 was the warmest year since the Qing dynasty, data from the Shanghai meteorological bureau showed on Wednesday.
The city’s average temperature was 18.8°C, the highest since meteorological records for Shanghai began in 1873.
Last year’s warmer weather, accompanied by stronger storms and greater rainfall, led to increases in energy consumption in the world’s second-largest economy.
The sweltering heat also affected agriculture in regions such as the rice-producing south.
To safeguard its food security in the face of rising temperatures, China has embarked on research to adapt staple crops to the heat.
Crop yields are expected to fall if alternatives are not found.
Scientists at a Beijing research center found that potatoes, of which China is the world’s leading producer, weighed less than 50% of typical varieties if grown in a chamber 3°C above the norm.
According to a United Nations report published in October, under current climate policies, the world faces warming of up to 3.1°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100.
