Global carbon dioxide levels continued to rise despite pandemic

Emissions rose to 419 parts per million in May, the highest such measurement in the 63 years that the data has been recorded

The data is in: carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere hit 419 parts per million in May. The levels have now reached the dangerous milestone of being 50% higher than when the industrial age began - and the average rate of increase is faster than ever.

The figure is the highest measurement of the crucial greenhouse gas in the 63 years that data has been recorded at the Mauna Loa Atmospheric Baseline Observatory in Hawaii - despite slowdowns in air travel and industry during a global pandemic in the past year.