2024 global mean lake surface water temperature (LSWT) was 0.3 °C greater than the 2001–2023 average, the fourth highest on record. Particularly strong positive — and record-breaking — LSWT anomalies occurred throughout Canada and north-eastern Europe, in some cases exceeding 2 °C.
Key points
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Global-mean LSWT continues to trend positively, increasing at a rate of 0.26 °C dec–1.
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LSWT anomalies generally increase with air temperature, the exception being lakes affected by glacial meltwater or snow melting, as in the Tibetan Plateau and Andes.
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Although positive LSWT anomalies predominate globally, clusters of negative anomalies occurred in parts of Kazakhstan and into Russia, often the coolest on record.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (42425102 and U22A20561) and the NIGLAS foundation (E1SL002).
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Shi, K., Wang, X., Qin, Y. et al. Lake surface water temperature in 2024. Nat Rev Earth Environ 6, 258–260 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-025-00654-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-025-00654-1
