Numerous regions of the Earth are in the grip of extreme weather conditions. While the winter storm that struck the United States made headlines everywhere, with glacial temperatures and snow even in places where flurries are unusual, other extraordinary situations have received far less attention.

Extreme heat in Australia: temperatures approaching 50 degrees Celsius, wildfires break out

In Australia, for example, the last week of January was dominated by exceptionally hot conditions. Particularly in the southern portion of the Oceanian nation, temperatures exceeded 45 degrees Celsius, approaching the threshold of 50 degrees in some areas. "It is the most intense heatwave ever recorded, and what makes it particularly extraordinary is its duration: an entire week," explained Dean Narramore, a meteorologist.

Peter Dynes @PGDynes

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A huge heat dome is set to sit over parts of NSW & Victoria next week, baking the regions. Some places will see 49°C (120°F) — utterly insane temperatures. That is not sustainable for long without air conditioning. Expect major stress on infrastructure & ecosystems #Australia

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On 27 January, Melbourne recorded temperatures exceeding 43 degrees in the shade. But in the towns of Hopetoun and Walpeup, further to the west, thermometers reached an all-time record for the State of Victoria. Inevitably, wildfires followed. Two in particular struck the north-east of the Australian federal state's territory, fuelled by exceptionally dry vegetation as well as the extreme heat. And the summer season still has a long way to go.

Storm in Portugal, 21 dead from wildfires in Chile and Argentina

Also at the end of January, a storm described as "extreme" struck Portugal. Dubbed "Kristin", the event brought wind gusts reaching 150 kilometres per hour, causing trees to fall, flooding and landslides.

Comissão Europeia em Portugal @CE_PTrep

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🇪🇺🇵🇹 Em visita a Portugal, o Comissário Europeu para a Energia e Habitação, @DanJoergensen, está a acompanhar o impacto extremo da tempestade #Kristin:

"A Comissão Europeia está pronta para apoiar a recuperação de Portugal. A Europa está em total solidariedade com Portugal."

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In Latin America, a series of severe wildfires has caused at least 21 deaths across Chile and Argentina. Hundreds of homes have been destroyed and President Gabriel Boric has declared a state of natural catastrophe. In Argentina, the flames are even threatening the pristine forests of Patagonia: already 45,000 hectares have been devoured by fires in a month and a half, forcing local authorities to evacuate thousands of people, both residents and tourists.

UN Environment Programme ✓ @UNEP

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From Chile to Argentina, Australia & South Africa, devastation has shown while wildfires are not caused by a single factor, a warming climate makes them more frequent, intense, & destructive.

The Wildfire Management Hub supports prevention & response: bit.ly/4bzoECV

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A situation that is drawing criticism towards far-right president Javier Milei, who has launched a draconian austerity plan cutting numerous budget items, including those for wildfire prevention, for the protection of natural parks and for the fire service.

Extreme weather in Kamchatka: five metres of snow

In Russia and parts of northern Europe, extreme cold conditions have been experienced as a result of the slowing of the polar vortex. On the Kamchatka peninsula in particular, more than two metres of snow fell in January, adding to the 3.7 metres that had already fallen in December. It was the most intense snowfall since the 1970s.

In Japan, too, snowfall was unprecedented: the western coastline was blanketed in snow up to 4.5 metres deep, particularly in the Aomori region. According to Japan's Fire and Disaster Management Agency, the toll from the extreme weather event stands at at least 30 deaths and 324 injuries.

In Mozambique, 400,000 flee torrential rains

Southern Africa, for its part, was hit by torrential rainfall. Mozambique in particular experienced severe flooding with major damage to crops, forcing around 400,000 people to flee and affecting 650,000 in various ways. Indonesia and New Zealand also had to contend with extreme precipitation.

All of this is perfectly consistent with what climatologists around the world have been explaining for decades: the rise in average global temperature, driven largely by the burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas), is making extreme weather events increasingly frequent, violent and prolonged.