Blue book details climate impact

China is warming at a faster rate than the global average, while extreme heat, heavy rainfall and other severe weather events are becoming more frequent and intense as climate change accelerates worldwide, according to a new climate assessment released on Thursday.

The Blue Book on Climate Change in China 2026, published by the China Meteorological Administration, outlined how global warming continues unabated, with oceans heating more rapidly, glaciers melting at an accelerated pace and sea levels reaching record highs.

"The trend of global climate warming continues to evolve," said Yuan Jiashuang, deputy director of the National Climate Center, at a news conference.

According to the blue book, the global average surface temperature in 2025 was about 1.4 C above preindustrial levels, making it the third-warmest year since modern records began in 1850. The period between 2015 and 2025 was the warmest 11-year span on record.

From 1961 to 2025, China's annual average temperature increased by 0.31 C per decade, exceeding the global average warming rate over the same period, the report said.

Northern China warmed more rapidly than southern regions, while western China experienced faster warming than the east.

"Eastern and Central China recorded their highest annual average temperatures since 1961, while Xujiahui Observatory in Shanghai registered its warmest year since local observations began in 1873," Yuan said.

The report found that although China's annual precipitation has generally increased, the number of rainy days has declined.

Average annual rainfall rose by 6.3 millimeters per decade between 1961 and 2025, while the number of precipitation days fell by nearly one day every decade.

Rainfall patterns varied widely across the country, with wetter conditions on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and in parts of northern China, but declining precipitation in southwestern regions.

The report said extreme cold events have declined markedly since the 1960s, while extreme heat events have increased sharply since the beginning of the 21st century.

"Heavy rainfall events have also become more frequent. The number of nationwide heavy rain days increased by 4.5 percent per decade," Yuan said.

China experienced unusually active rainfall in 2025. North China recorded its second-wettest year since 1961, while both the duration of the rainy season and total rainfall reached record levels.

Meanwhile, the global mean sea levels rose at an average rate of 3.5 mm per year between 1993 and 2025, reaching their highest level in the satellite era. Along China's coast, sea levels rose even faster, averaging 4 mm annually, according to the report.

Glaciers continued to shrink worldwide, while six representative glaciers in western China all showed accelerating retreat, it added.

China has been stepping up efforts to strengthen climate resilience in response to increasingly frequent and severe extreme weather.

The China Meteorological Administration, this week, released the National Meteorological Disaster Prevention Plan (2026-30), which aims to modernize the country's disaster prevention system by the end of the decade.

Wang Yawei, spokesman for the administration, said the plan seeks to establish a prevention-oriented disaster response model better suited to an era of more frequent and intense extreme weather.

The plan calls for building a next-generation Earth system numerical weather prediction model, upgrading short-term forecasting capabilities and developing an integrated national map for meteorological disaster risk warnings covering high-risk industries and regions.

It also highlights improved warning products for urban flooding, geological disasters and drought.

"With the rapid expansion of large cities, meteorological hazards such as urban flooding and strong winds are becoming more severe," Wang said.

"We will comprehensively assess urban climate carrying capacity and carry out real-time monitoring, risk warnings and emergency response for critical infrastructure to enhance the climate resilience of cities," he said.

zhaoyimeng@chinadaily.com.cn