Technologies

Expect Record-Breaking Global Heat in Next 5 Years, Study Says

The World Meteorological Organization predicts that last year’s record-setting temperatures have an 80% chance of happening again within the next five years.

It’s no secret that 2024 was hot. In fact, it was the hottest year ever recorded, with massive heat waves plowing through the US on multiple occasions. It followed up on 2023, which was also the hottest year at the time. Based on predictions, the heat is likely to get even worse over the next five years.

The World Meteorological Organization on Wednesday published its predictions for the next five years. It reports that there’s a roughly 80% chance that at least one of the next five years will surpass 2024 as the warmest humans have seen since recordkeeping began in 1850.

«We have just experienced the 10 warmest years on record. Unfortunately, this WMO report provides no sign of respite over the coming years, and this means that there will be a growing negative impact on our economies, our daily lives, our ecosystems, and our planet,» WMO Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett said in a statement.

In addition, the WMO predicts a 70% chance that the average warming increase will be higher than 1.5 degrees Celsius over the next five years. This is significant because it’s the long-term limit set by the Paris Agreement, indicating that climate change is getting dangerously close to exceeding the agreement’s goals. However, the UN notes that individual months or years can fluctuate due to things like El Niño/La Niña and other weather adjustments. The first calendar year period with temps exceeding the 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold was 2024.

Arctic warming is also predicted to continue

Despite the surprising growth of ice in the Arctic due to uncharacteristic snowfall in early 2025, that famously frigid part of the planet is also expected to warm even more than the rest of the globe due to a phenomenon known as Arctic amplification. This is caused by bright, reflective sea ice melting, allowing the sun to better warm the darker water underneath. This has a snowball effect where the Arctic gets warmer faster as it loses more and more ice.

While global temperatures exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius in 2024 and will likely do so again over the next five years, the temperatures in the Arctic are even warmer.

WMO predicts that the Arctic will warm up by «three and a half times the global average» for the next five winters. The prediction goes on to say that further reduction of sea ice is probable, while weather conditions in northern regions like Alaska, northern Europe and northern Siberia will likely be wetter than average due to warming.

Technologies

The Most Exciting Video Game Rumors and Leaks Ahead of 2026

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, Dec. 17

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Dec. 17.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Nod (off)
Answer: DOZE

5A clue: Naval submarine in W.W. II
Answer: UBOAT

7A clue: Tricky thing to do on a busy highway
Answer: MERGE

8A clue: Heat-resistant glassware for cooking
Answer: PYREX

9A clue: Put into groups
Answer: SORT

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Break up with
Answer: DUMP

2D clue: Falls in line, so to speak
Answer: OBEYS

3D clue: Legendary vigilante who cuts a «Z» with his sword
Answer: ZORRO

4D clue: Rarin’ to go
Answer: EAGER

6D clue: Common reminder for an upcoming appointment
Answer: TEXT

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Technologies

You Can Watch an Exclusive Avatar: Fire and Ash Scene on TikTok Right Now

Disney and TikTok partner on an immersive content hub for James Cameron’s latest movie about the alien Na’vi.

If you’re not quite ready to head to the theater to watch Avatar: Fire and Ash, an exclusive scene preview might sell you on the visual spectacle. As part of a new collaboration with the social media giant, Disney is posting snippets of its new movie to its TikTok account.

This scene isn’t part of any trailer and won’t be posted to other social media accounts, making TikTok the only place you can view it — unless you buy a movie ticket. A first look at the new movie’s scenes isn’t the only Avatar-related bonus on the social media platform right now, either. TikTok has partnered with the house of mouse to bring an entire «immersive content hub» to the app.

A special section of TikTok includes quizzes and educational videos that explore the alien world of Pandora shown off in the movies. On TikTok, you can take a personality quiz to find out what Na’vi clan you most closely align with and unlock a special profile picture border to use on your account.

Science and fiction blend together with a series of videos from real doctors who explain the basis for some of Avatar’s world-building. If you want to learn about exoplanets or how realistic the anatomy of the movie’s alien animals is, these videos will feed your brain while still providing entertainment value.

Perhaps the most enticing part of Disney’s latest social media collaboration is the opportunity for fans to win prizes and trips. TikTok creators who make edits with the #TikTokAvatarContest hashtag are entered into a competition to win Avatar merchandise. The biggest winners will be able to take a trip to visual effects studio Wētā Workshop in New Zealand or visit Avatar director James Cameron’s Lightstorm Entertainment Studio in Los Angeles.

Avatar: Fire and Ash is the third installment in director Cameron’s cinematic passion project. While the first Avatar movie was released in 2009, Cameron didn’t release another entry in the franchise until 2022. In total, there is a five-movie arc planned for the indigo alien Na’vi on the moon of Pandora.

The Avatar movies are known for pushing the boundaries of CGI visual effects in cinema. They are also historically big winners at the box office: the original Avatar is the highest-grossing film of all time, earning $2.9 billion across its theatrical releases. Its sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, is the third-highest-grossing film of all time, trailing Avengers: Endgame. You can stream those movies on Disney Plus.

It remains to be seen whether Avatar: Fire and Ash will financially live up to its predecessors. The film currently has mixed reviews from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.