China experienced its hottest year on record, as well as one of the wettest, in 2023, highlighting the escalating impact of climate change through a series of extreme weather events to come.
Beijing-based National Climate Center (NCC) reported this week that the average temperature for the year soared to 10.7 degrees Celsius (51.3 Fahrenheit), eclipsing the prior record of 10.5 C set in 2021.
This makes 2023 the warmest year since record-keeping commenced in 1961, underscoring the escalating concerns about the impact of climate change in China, the world’s largest emitter of climate change-inducing greenhouse gases.
Sweltering conditions prevailed in cities nationwide, resulting in 127 national weather stations shattering their records for daily high temperatures.
Beijing saw its hottest June day ever, reaching just over 40 C, and logged 27 consecutive days of temperatures above 35 C (95 F) in July, breaking a 23-year-old record.
According to state broadcaster CCTV, a significant portion of China experienced temperatures that were 0.5 to 1 degree Celsius higher than usual.
A historical peak temperature of 52.2 C (126 F) was recorded at a weather station in the far northwestern Xinjiang region on July 16.
Along with the highest average temperature last year, NCC said China also hit the lowest temperatures on Jan. 22 when the temperature in Jintao town in Mohe, northeastern Heilongjiang province, reached -53 C.
China’s extreme weather in 2023 was not confined to temperatures, as the nation also grappled with heavy rains during the summer, exacerbated by multiple typhoons striking the mainland.
According to CCTV, at least 55 national weather stations across China logged daily rainfall amounts surpassing previous records, with the highest being Beihai in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, which accumulated 3,233.6 millimeters.
Dozens of people were killed, while more than a million were displaced, according to Chinese authorities.
Recently, China is going through a bitter winter, with Beijing experiencing its longest coldwave in December, with temperatures often plunging below -10C.
Other parts of the country have faced several bouts of intense cold, impacting several provinces and leading to school closures, transportation challenges, and energy supply issues in Henan province.
Last week, Zhou Bing, the head of NCC, warned that in 2024, the country is expected to experience higher temperatures and an increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events.
“2024 may be hotter, and it could also be a year when extreme weather may become more frequent and powerful,” he said in a report by state broadcaster CCTV.
Such climatic challenges are largely due to El Niño, a climate phenomenon characterized by the periodic warming of the equatorial Pacific.
Edited by Elaine Chan and Taejun Kang.