The world recorded the highest temperature in early June in history.

The average global temperature in early June this year was the highest ever recorded for that period, according to the EU climate monitoring agency.

"The world has just experienced the warmest early June on record. This May was less than 0.1 degrees Celsius below the warmest May on record," Samantha Burgess, deputy director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), the climate monitoring unit of the European Union (EU), said on June 15.

On June 9, the average global temperature was 16.7 degrees Celsius, the highest ever recorded on that day in history. C3S said that on June 8 and 9, the average global temperature was about 0.4 degrees Celsius warmer than the same period in previous years.

Chart of average global temperatures by day over the years. Graphic: AFP — Chart of average global temperatures over the years. Graphic: *AFP/Copernicus*

In early June, global temperatures exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels (1850-1900). This is the limit set by the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change to limit global warming. Specifically, June 9 recorded temperatures 1.69 degrees Celsius higher than pre-industrial levels.

Copernicus previously announced that last May, the Earth's oceans also recorded the highest temperatures compared to any May in history.

The announcement comes amid the emergence of El Nino, a phenomenon characterized by warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean near the equator. The most recent occurrence was in 2018-2019 and occurs on average every 2-7 years.

Most of the hottest years have occurred during El Nino periods. Scientists fear this summer and next could see record temperatures on land and at sea.

"We expect 2024 to be even hotter than 2023 as the El Niño event continues to develop," Burgess said. "We know that as the global climate warms, extreme events become more likely and more severe."

Copernicus is based in the German city of Bonn, where UN-led climate talks are taking place ahead of the COP28 climate summit in Dubai later this year.