April 2025 Sets Near-Record Global Heat Levels

April 2025 was the second warmest April on record globally, just 0.13°F cooler than April 2024, and has kept 2025 on track to be Earth's second warmest year ever, according to the European Copernicus Climate Change Service and other agencies. Record or near-record temperatures were reported in regions including New Zealand, the United Arab Emirates, China, and parts of the United States, with New Zealand experiencing its fifth warmest April since 1909. The global average temperature has exceeded the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C threshold for 21 of the past 22 months, prompting warnings from scientists that this critical limit could be permanently surpassed as soon as 2029. Some experts note that recent extreme warmth may partly reflect natural variability, but the ongoing heat streak is widely seen as a sign of accelerated climate change. In Central Texas, mid-May is forecast to bring the hottest temperatures of 2025 so far, potentially breaking local records and introducing the first triple-digit days of the year. These trends underscore the widespread and intensifying impacts of climate change on global and regional temperature records.