Atmospheric CO2 Levels Reached Another High in 2018

The concentration of the greenhouse gas is now one-and-a-half times what it was before the Industrial Revolution, the World Meteorological Association says.

Written byShawna Williams
| 2 min read
a winter cityscape with smokestacks

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
2:00
Share

ABOVE: © ISTOCK.COM, TARZAN9280

The level of CO2 in the Earth’s atmosphere hit a record 407.8 parts per million last year, the World Meteorological Association announced yesterday (November 25) in a report. The findings “underlined the glaring—and growing—gap between agreed targets to tackle global warming and the actual reality,” the WMO says in a statement.

The increase in CO2 levels from 2017 to 2018 was “just above the average over the last decade,” according to the WMO’s press release, and puts the total concentration of the gas at nearly 150 percent what it was in 1750, before the Industrial Revolution accelerated the rate of human-induced carbon emissions. The concentrations of two other major greenhouse gases, methane and nitrous oxide, also rose last year at a higher rate than average for the decade.

“There is no sign of a slowdown, let alone a decline, in greenhouse gases concentration in the atmosphere ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Related Topics

Meet the Author

  • Shawna was an editor at The Scientist from 2017 through 2022. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from Colorado College and a graduate certificate in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Previously, she worked as a freelance editor and writer, and in the communications offices of several academic research institutions. As news director, Shawna assigned and edited news, opinion, and in-depth feature articles for the website on all aspects of the life sciences. She is based in central Washington State, and is a member of the Northwest Science Writers Association and the National Association of Science Writers.

    View Full Profile
Share
December digest cover image of a wooden sculpture comprised of multiple wooden neurons that form a seahorse.
December 2025, Issue 1

Wooden Neurons: An Artistic Vision of the Brain

A neurobiologist, who loves the morphology of cells, turns these shapes into works of art made from wood.

View this Issue
Stacks of cell culture dishes, plates, and flasks with pink cell culture medium on a white background.

Driving Innovation with Cell Culture Essentials

Merck
Stacks of cell culture dishes, plates, and flasks with pink cell culture medium on a white background.

Driving Innovation with Cell Culture Essentials

MilliporeSigma purple logo
Abstract wireframe sphere with colorful dots and connecting lines representing the complex cellular and molecular interactions within the tumor microenvironment.

Exploring the Inflammatory Tumor Microenvironment 

Cellecta logo
An image of a DNA sequencing spectrum with a radial blur filter applied.

A Comprehensive Guide to Next-Generation Sequencing

Integra Logo

Products

brandtech logo

BRANDTECH® Scientific Announces Strategic Partnership with Copia Scientific to Strengthen Sales and Service of the BRAND® Liquid Handling Station (LHS) 

Top Innovations 2026 Contest Image

Enter Our 2026 Top Innovations Contest

Biotium Logo

Biotium Expands Tyramide Signal Amplification Portfolio with Brighter and More Stable Dyes for Enhanced Spatial Imaging

Labvantage Logo

LabVantage Solutions Awarded $22.3 Million U.S Customs and Border Protection Contract to Deliver Next-Generation Forensic LIMS