The Eaton Fire, which ravaged part of Los Angeles in January 2025, was one of the most destructive wildfires in California history.
Photographer: Michael Nigro/Bloomberg
Scientists Confirm 2025 Was Third-Hottest Year, Trailing 2024 and 2023
Last year was one of the warmest on record, even with a La Niña weather cycle that worked to cool the world down.
Last year was the third hottest on record, according to an analysis of temperature data released Wednesday by three independent agencies. That puts 2025 just behind the second-hottest year, 2023, and the hottest, 2024.
What makes this result extraordinary, scientists say, is that 2025 saw a cooling phase in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, or La Niña, that suppresses global temperatures. In other words: Heat from greenhouse gases countered that cooling influence enough that the year still landed among the very warmest.