This article was written by Laura Paddison and was published by CNN News on July 8, 2023.

Visitors leaving the Forbidden City on a hot day in Beijing, Thursday, June 29, 2023.Andy Wong/APCNN — 

The world is blasting through climate records as scientists sound the alarm: The likelihood is growing that 2023 could be the hottest year on record, and the climate crisis could be altering our weather in ways they don’t yet understand.

And they are not holding back – “extraordinary,” “terrifying” and “uncharted territory” are just a few of the ways they have described the recent spike in global temperature.