World Breaks Hottest-Day Record for Third Time This Week, Says US Agency

Members of the public relax on the beach in hot weather in Cleethorpes, north east England on July 7, 2023 (AFP)
Members of the public relax on the beach in hot weather in Cleethorpes, north east England on July 7, 2023 (AFP)
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World Breaks Hottest-Day Record for Third Time This Week, Says US Agency

Members of the public relax on the beach in hot weather in Cleethorpes, north east England on July 7, 2023 (AFP)
Members of the public relax on the beach in hot weather in Cleethorpes, north east England on July 7, 2023 (AFP)

The world recorded its hottest day ever on Thursday, breaking previous highs set on Monday and Tuesday as global average temperatures continue to climb, according to data from the US National Centers on Environmental Prediction.

The global average temperature hit 17.23 degrees Celsius (63.01 Fahrenheit) on Thursday, according to the government agency.

The record comes days after intense heatwaves in the United States and China, while another killed more than 100 people in Mexico, as temperatures soar globally.

On Thursday, the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service said June was the hottest month ever, smashing the previous June record in 2019 by a substantial margin.

"Such records are the predictable consequence of a short-term El Nino temperature boost coming on top of the long-term global warming trend due to mankind's greenhouse gas emissions," said Robert Rohde, lead scientist for climate science nonprofit Berkeley Earth, on Twitter.

The El Nino weather pattern emerged this year, bringing warm sea surface temperatures in the eastern and central Pacific Ocean.

After the previous daily high from August 2016 was first broken on Monday, several scientists predicted more record-setting days this year.

"Expect many more hottest days in the future," said Saleemul Huq, director of Bangladesh's International Centre for Climate Change and Development, in a statement.



Flights Cancelled to and from Indonesia’s Bali Due to Volcanic Ash

 Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki spews ash and smoke during an eruption as seen from Lewolaga village in Titihena, East Nusa Tenggara, on November 13, 2024. (AFP)
Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki spews ash and smoke during an eruption as seen from Lewolaga village in Titihena, East Nusa Tenggara, on November 13, 2024. (AFP)
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Flights Cancelled to and from Indonesia’s Bali Due to Volcanic Ash

 Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki spews ash and smoke during an eruption as seen from Lewolaga village in Titihena, East Nusa Tenggara, on November 13, 2024. (AFP)
Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki spews ash and smoke during an eruption as seen from Lewolaga village in Titihena, East Nusa Tenggara, on November 13, 2024. (AFP)

Several international airlines cancelled flights to and from Indonesia's resort island of Bali on Wednesday, after further eruptions of a volcano that has spewed ash clouds as high as 10 km (32,808 ft) and forced thousands to evacuate.

Jetstar and Qantas said they had stopped flights to Bali on Wednesday for safety reasons because of volcanic ash, while plane tracking website Flightradar24 showed flights to the island by AirAsia and Virgin were also cancelled.

Bali is Indonesia's top tourist hotspot and is a popular destination for Australian visitors.

The first eruption of the Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki on Nov. 3 in the East Nusa Tenggara province, about 800 km (497 miles) from Bali, killed at least nine people. It has since erupted repeatedly, including multiple times on Tuesday.

From Nov. 4 to Nov. 12, 80 flights in Bali were cancelled, including from Singapore, Hong Kong, and several Australian cities, said Ahmad Syaugi Shahab, general manager of Bali's Ngurah Rai airport.

Indonesia has close to 130 active volcanoes and sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", an area of high seismic activity atop various tectonic plates.

The ash column from Mount Lewotobi has reached as high as 10 km and authorities have said sand fall has covered surrounding areas.