Climate change to drive annual temps to new highs within a generation, study says

An enormous iceberg breaks off the Knox Coast in the Australian Antarctic Territory.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• A new study sets dates when average temperatures will exceed current records
• Some cities in the tropics will hit the milestone by 2020, the study says
• By 2100, average temps will be higher than any time since at least 1860, study says
• Limiting emissions will slow down but not stop the changes, authors say

Average annual temperatures will start to consistently exceed the highest levels previously recorded in as little as seven years in tropical hotspots and within four decades for the majority of the globe if nothing is done to stop climate change, according to a new study published Thursday in the journal Nature.

And by the end of the century, monthly average temperatures will be higher than at any time since at least 1860, according to the study, led by University of Hawaii geographer Camilo Mora.

The effects will be felt first in tropical climates, with the annual temperature range rising beyond the historical range in Manokwari, Indonesia, in 2020, according to a map that accompanies the study on the University of Hawaii website.

Mexico City's date is 2031. It's 2046 in Orlando, and a year later in Washington and New York, according to the group. Anchorage, Alaska, doesn't climb on board until 2071.

"The results shocked us. Regardless of the scenario, changes will be coming soon," Mora said in a statement posted by the university. "Within my generation, whatever climate we were used to will be a thing of the past."

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