Antarctica, the coldest continent on Earth set a record high temperature on Thursday. According to researchers, in a reading taken by the Argentine research base Esperanza, the temperature went up to 18.3C! Which is hotter than New Delhi in winters. This is also 0.8C hotter than the previous peak temperature of the area – 17.5C, which was recorded in March 2015.
(This) is not a figure you would normally associate with Antarctica, even in the summertime.
-WMO spokeswoman Clare Nullis
The ideal summer temperature for this region in 15 degrees Celsius and this is warmer. Can you imagine walking around Antarctica is just a cotton jacket?
The temperature was recorded in the Antarctic Peninsula, which is on the continent’s north-west tip and is one of the fastest-warming regions on earth, with the ice melting at a rapid speed.
Scientists have warned that global warming is causing melting at the South Pole at such a rapid rate that it will eventually disintegrate – causing the global sea level to rise by at least three metres (10ft) over centuries. This will, in return, lead to disappearance of entire cities if no action is taken towards climate change.