--- title: Carbon Levels Rise at Fastest Rate in 30 Years, Study Finds description: The concentration of carbon in the earth's atmosphere surged in 2013, according to a new study from the World Meteorological Organization canonical: https://time.com/3308636/carbon-levels-greenhouse-gas-wmo/ author: Dan Kedmey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-09-09T12:44:18.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-21T10:04:47.913Z article:section: Science og:title: Carbon Levels Rise at Fastest Rate in 30 Years, Study Finds og:description: The concentration of carbon in the earth's atmosphere surged in 2013, according to a new study from the World Meteorological Organization og:url: https://time.com/3308636/carbon-levels-greenhouse-gas-wmo/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2a73fdd4f2fbf6c9/6986a279d0b6f2bd6f305fca/175634041.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4470 og:image:height: 2514 og:image:alt: Greenland: A Laboratory For The Symptoms Of Global Warming og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Carbon Levels Rise at Fastest Rate in 30 Years, Study Finds twitter:description: The concentration of carbon in the earth's atmosphere surged in 2013, according to a new study from the World Meteorological Organization twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2a73fdd4f2fbf6c9/6986a279d0b6f2bd6f305fca/175634041.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Carbon Levels Surged at Fastest Rate in 30 Years in 2013, Study Finds  by [Dan Kedmey](https://time.com/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Sep 9, 2014 12:44 PM UTC  Kunuk Nielsen navigates his boat among calved icebergs from the nearby Twin Glaciers on July 31, 2013 in Qaqortoq, Greenland. Kunuk Nielsen navigates his boat among calved icebergs from the nearby Twin Glaciers on July 31, 2013 in Qaqortoq, Greenland.Joe Raedle—Getty Images  by [Dan Kedmey](https://time.com/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Sep 9, 2014 12:44 PM UTC The concentration of carbon in the earth’s atmosphere climbed at a faster rate last year than any year since 1984, according to a [new study](https://www.wmo.int/pages/mediacentre/press%5Freleases/pr%5F1002%5Fen.html) from the World Meteorological Organization. The study also measured new highs in concentrations of methane and nitrous oxide, which the United Nations agency’s scientists warned would have a warming effect on the earth’s climate. Preliminary data suggests that greenhouse gases may have risen not only because of emissions, but also because of a reduced uptake of carbon by the oceans and the biosphere. Together, they absorb 50% of carbon emissions, the study’s authors note, resulting in record high rates of ocean acidification. “We know without any doubt that our climate is changing and our weather is becoming more extreme due to human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels,” said WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3308636/carbon-levels-greenhouse-gas-wmo/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3308636/carbon-levels-greenhouse-gas-wmo/"},"headline":"Carbon Levels Surged at Fastest Rate in 30 Years in 2013, Study Finds","datePublished":"2014-09-09T12:44:18.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T10:04:47.913Z","description":"World Meteorological Organization warns that record highs of greenhouse gases would have warming effect on earth's climate","url":"https://time.com/3308636/carbon-levels-greenhouse-gas-wmo/","keywords":["Environment","climate change","carbon","global warming","Pollution","Oceans","emissions"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2a73fdd4f2fbf6c9/6986a279d0b6f2bd6f305fca/175634041.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Dan Kedmey","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/dan-kedmey/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2a73fdd4f2fbf6c9/6986a279d0b6f2bd6f305fca/175634041.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Greenland: A Laboratory For The Symptoms Of Global Warming","caption":"Greenland: A Laboratory For The Symptoms Of Global Warming","creditText":"Joe Raedle—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/environment/","name":"Environment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3308636/carbon-levels-greenhouse-gas-wmo/","name":"Carbon Levels Surged at Fastest Rate in 30 Years in 2013, Study Finds"}}]}] ```