Climate change:Temperatures will rise to 4.5 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial averages by the end of the century -- U.N. report, Lancet evaluation

World 'nowhere near' hitting climate targets, U.N. warns Latest estimates say temperatures will rise to 4.5 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial averages by the end of the century, the U.N. climate office said in a new report. NBC News

The world is "nowhere near" hitting its targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions, putting it on track to soar past the limit for global warming that countries committed to in the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement, the United Nations has warned.

That means the planet is on course for a future marked by unprecedented heat waves, destructive storms and drought, as well as the extinction of animal and plant species.