The American Meteorological Society's State of the Climate report showed 2024 set numerous weather records and saw high land and ocean surface temperatures. CBS News national environmental correspondent David Schechter breaks it down.

A recent State of Climate Report from the American Meteorological Society reveals that 2024 has seen unprecedented global temperatures and precipitation levels. The report notes that both air and ocean temperatures have reached record highs, with the global average sea surface temperature being the highest in 171 years of record keeping. This warming has contributed to more extreme weather events, including floods, droughts, and wildfires, such as California's Gifford Fire, which has burned over 130,000 acres.

Additionally, all 58 monitored glaciers worldwide have experienced their greatest recorded loss of ice mass, impacting water supplies for many communities. The report comes as the United States, under the Trump administration, has reduced investment in renewable energy and withdrawn from the Paris climate agreement, signaling a shift in climate policy at a critical time.

Report highlights unprecedented temperatures, precipitation in 2024

California's Gifford Fire is now considered a megafire. That's according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The wildfire has burned more than 130,000 acres in the Los Padres National Forest in just two weeks. As of now, it's only 40 percent contained. From fires in the heat, from fires and heat in the West to a tropical storm brewing in the Atlantic, extreme weather is spreading from coast to coast this month. According to the American Meteorological Society State of Climate Report published this morning, 2024 set numerous weather records indicating that we are experiencing temperatures and precipitation never seen before in the modern era. CBS News National Environmental Correspondent David Schechter joins us from Dallas to break down that report. David, good to see you. So what stands out to you? Hey, Vlad. I know I'm here to give you the highlights, but the truth is this is not a very cheerful report. I don't want to toot the messenger. But here are three things among the many that I think are worth thinking about and remembering. One, let's talk about air temperature. Earth's average air temperature reached a new high in 2024. That warmer air helps drive more extreme floods and droughts and fires. Two, we have ocean temperature. The global average sea surface temperature was the highest in the 171 years of record keeping. That's important because oceans are absorbing most of the Earth's additional heat. They also put moisture into the atmosphere, which comes down as extreme rain, which there also was a lot of in 2024. And number three, I want to talk about glaciers. All 58 glaciers that get measured around the world for loss of ice mass have lost mass more than any time that they've been keeping records over 55 years. And that can affect people around the world who depend on that meltwater for their drinking water. All right. So these are clearly sobering numbers. And we've talked about this before. Can anything be done to address it? I mean, yeah, I think it's always good to look at some optimism here. We do have, as we've talked about, all the tools as a society that we do need to arrest climate change. We have solar power. We have wind power. We have electric vehicles and batteries. And all those things are very effective at reducing our greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, the Trump administration has really slashed investment in all of those areas. And so what looked very promising in terms of a growth curve is really expected to flatten out as he is really taking on renewable energy. And former President Biden was making some aggressive efforts to reduce U.S. emissions. What are we seeing now under the Trump administration? Yeah. Yeah. So, right. So all kinds of, well, really the emphasis now is very pro-business. What can be done to stimulate business, reduce regulation, reduce, particularly increase the use of fossil fuels? There's a big emphasis on that. The Trump administration has also removed the United States from the Paris climate agreement, which is the world's way of getting together every year and trying to find ways to effectively reduce the impacts of climate change on the future. Those talks continue and they'll happen again this fall. But the United States won't be there against this backdrop of this report, which is pretty dire. Hmm. All right. David Schechter. Not some good news this morning. Thank you, my friend.

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Breakdown