MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Last year was the hottest in Brazil since 1961

“This trend may be associated with climate change,” Brazil's Inmet said

Last year was the hottest for Brazil since 1961, Agencia Brasil reported citing data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock's National Institute of Meteorology (Inmet). The weather agency also found a rising trend in average annual temperatures.

According to the survey, temperatures peaked last year, with the annual average reaching 25.02°C. The 2024 data also showed a 0.79°C increase from the historical average between 1991 and 2020 of 24.23°C.

Last year's figures also surpassed those of 2023, which had been the hottest year since 1961. The annual average for 2023 was 24.92°C.

Inmet's analysis of the deviations in average temperatures since 1961, compared to the historical average from 1991 to 2020, reveals a statistically significant upward trend. “This trend may be associated with climate change due to rising global temperatures and local environmental changes,” it was explained.

The agency also highlighted the influence of the recent El Niño phenomenon, from strong to very strong, in 2023 and the early months of 2024. El Niño is a natural phenomenon marked by the weakening of trade winds (which blow from east to west) and the unusual warming of surface waters in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. These shifts in the interaction between the ocean surface and the lower atmosphere occur at intervals of three to seven years.