Global greenhouse gas concentrations reached record highs in 2025 for carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, with CO2 at 426.8 ppm, methane at 1,948 ppb, and nitrous oxide at 339.1 ppb, according to the WMO Greenhouse Gas Bulletin (No. 22).

Over the past decade, Korea has seen higher average annual increases than the global average in CO2, methane, and nitrous oxide, signaling regional trends that align with the broader data.

Researchers, including Dr. Peter Sperlich and Dr. Sara Mikaloff-Fletcher, emphasize that the signal is not a short-term blip and underline the urgency to reduce emissions.

The temporary rise in wildfire-derived methane points to a climate-change feedback mechanism linked to human warming and an El Ni0o event that favored fires and reduced wetlands.

The report calls for mitigation and adaptation efforts, along with continued monitoring of greenhouse gases, their sources, and sinks.

Despite rising concentrations, the energy transition to cleaner energy remains essential for reducing long-term climate risks.

Experts warn that higher concentrations persist for decades to centuries and lock in future temperature increases, necessitating rapid, deep emissions reductions and a shift toward net-zero with negative emissions where needed.

The Paris Agreement remains central, with goals to keep warming well below 2°C, pursue 1.5°C where possible, and peak global emissions followed by rapid reductions.

KMA aims to strengthen understanding of greenhouse gas changes in Korea and globally and to support the nation’s carbon neutrality policies, leveraging long-term data and SF6 calibration capabilities.

Sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), used in electricity distribution, has risen over three decades and poses a long-lived, highly potent greenhouse gas threat.

Hydrogen-related emissions and leaks, while not a greenhouse gas themselves, can affect atmospheric chemistry and warming, with hydrogen concentrations rising 5.3% from 2010 to 2024, and leaks could offset some climate benefits of energy transitions.

El Niño is likely to intensify atmospheric greenhouse gas buildup in 2026 due to ongoing fossil fuel use and reduced natural carbon sinks during drier conditions.