2019 was the second hottest year on record and ended the hottest decade in history, according to the European Union's climate monitoring service.
Data released by the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) showed that worldwide temperatures last year were second only to 2016, in which temperatures were boosted 0.12°C by an exceptionally strong El Nino natural weather event. The average temperature in 2019 was only a few hundredths of a degree below the 2016 level.
The last five years have been the hottest on record, and the period of 2010-2019 was the hottest decade since records began, C3S said. Globally temperatures in 2019 were 0.6 Celsius warmer than the 1981-2010 average. Earth's temperature over the last five years was 1.1-1.2°C warmer than pre-industrial times.