WeekDay AM: 10 Things you need to know this morning
Global warming, Palestinian unity, and Nasa's 'strangest find' on Mars

 
today's climate story

The Earth just saw its hottest day on record

What happened 
Sunday, 21 July, was the hottest day in recorded global history, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service (CCCS), Europe's top climate monitoring organisation, which announced the preliminary findings yesterday.

Who said what
The Earth's average temperature on Sunday was 17.09C (62.76F), "breaking a record set only last year", said The Washington Post. "We are in truly uncharted territory," said CCCS head Carlo Buontempo. "We are bound to see records being broken in future months and years." 

Extreme heat is "nothing new," said USA Today. The Earth has seen "over 550 consecutive months with temperatures above the 20th-century average".

Still, the global temperature recorded on Sunday is "another worrying sign of how human-caused climate change is pushing the planet into dangerous new territory", said The Washington Post.

The sudden rise in global temperatures is linked to abnormal heat across Antarctica, according to the Copernicus analysis. The swift rise in temperature across the icy continent is a "trend that is alarming scientists", said CNN, given the region's ability to drive "catastrophic sea level rise".

What next? 
Many scientists are bracing for this year to "outrank 2023 as the hottest year since records began" due to "climate change and the El Niño natural weather phenomenon", said Reuters.

 
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today’s international story

Hamas and Fatah sign unity agreement in Beijing

What happened
Palestinian factions including Hamas and Fatah have signed a unity agreement aimed at "ending division and strengthening Palestinian unity", said China yesterday.

Who said what
The deal, finalised after three days of intensive talks, lays the groundwork for an "interim national reconciliation government" to rule post-war Gaza, said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The "core outcome" is that the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization) is the "sole legitimate representative of all Palestinian people", added Wang.

It was "unclear from Wang's comments what role Hamas, which is not part of the PLO, would play", said CNN.

What next?
Reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah would be a "key turning point in internal Palestinian relations", said Al Jazeera. The two main political parties in the Palestinian territory have been "bitter rivals" since conflict arose between them in 2006, after which Hamas seized control of Gaza.

The deal comes as part of China's ambition to "play a more direct role in international politics", said the BBC. Beijing continues to push a "vision of a Chinese-led world order" while criticising what it sees as the "failures of US 'hegemonic' leadership".

 
 
Today’s sport story

Long-time ace Murray announces retirement

What happened
Andy Murray has confirmed that he will retire from professional tennis after competing in the Paris Olympics.

The 37-year-old had already indicated that this year would be his final season, with Wimbledon and the Games to be his farewell events.

Who said what
Murray wrote on X: "Arrived in Paris for my last ever tennis tournament @Olympics. Competing for Britain has been the most memorable part of my career and I'm extremely proud to do it one final time!"

What next?
Paris will be Murray's fifth Olympic Games, with the tennis champion winning consecutive singles gold medals in London 2012 and Rio 2016, as well as a mixed doubles silver medal in 2012 with Laura Robson.

Murray is pencilled in to compete in both the singles and doubles alongside Dan Evans at Roland Garros, but it remains uncertain if he will take the court in the singles competition after undergoing back surgery four weeks ago.

 
 

It's not all bad

In a decision environmental activists called "historic", a court in Ecuador ruled this month that pollution violates the rights of the Machángara River flowing through Quito. The country's constitution recognises that nature has the "right to exist, persist, maintain and regenerate", and conservationists were able to make the case that those rights are being violated when the local government dumps contaminants into the Machángara. Under the ruling the government must put together a plan to clean up the river.

 
 
under the radar

Nasa's 'strangest find': pure sulphur on Mars

Nasa's Mars rover has made its "most unexpected" discovery since it landed on the red planet in 2012: rocks made of sulphur.

On 30 May the Curiosity rover "happened to drive over a rock and crack it open, revealing yellowish green crystals", said CNN. Nasa used the robot's instruments to analyse the rock, receiving data that indicated it was pure sulphur. Scientists were "stunned", said Nasa when it revealed the discovery last week.

"Finding a field of stones made of pure sulphur is like finding an oasis in the desert," said Ashwin Vasavada, Curiosity's project scientist at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. It's the "strangest find" and "most unexpected" of Curiosity's 12 years on Mars.

Previous research has suggested that pure sulphur "may have played a key role in the origin of life on Earth", said the Daily Mail. Now scientists are trying to establish what its presence can tell us about the red planet's past. But the discovery adds to the "growing evidence of other life-sustaining elements identified on Mars".

Pure sulphur rocks are typically found in hydrothermal vents on Earth. They form in a "narrow range" of conditions, such as volcanic activity or springs, said Nasa.

"Think Yellowstone," said Briony Horgan, co-investigator on the Perseverance rover mission and professor of planetary science at Purdue University in Indiana.

Pure sulphur "shouldn't be there, so now we have to explain it", said Vasavada. "Discovering strange and unexpected things is what makes planetary exploration so exciting."

 
 
on this day

24 July 1847

After a thousand-mile journey from Nauvoo, Illinois, Brigham Young led a group of followers from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints into Utah's Great Salt Lake Valley. The group considered it the founding of a Mormon homeland. The arrival is remembered annually in the state on Pioneer Day, which is traditionally celebrated with parades, speeches and festivities.

 
 
Today’s newspapers

"Axe Strictly?" asks Metro, "No cha-chance!" An apology from the BBC's director general over complaints of abusive behaviour on the reality show features on the front page of several papers including the Daily Express, which says Tim Davie was "forced to intervene personally". The Times focuses on a government health adviser who says people on long-term sick leave must be required to look for jobs to deal with the welfare burden. The UK has got "three years to get ready for war", says the i paper. In a major speech, Gen Sir Roly Walker predicted Russia would seek revenge on the West.

► See the newspaper front pages

 
 
tall tale

Slow and steady halts the rat race

A slow-moving tortoise delayed train travellers last week after he escaped his home and clambered on to nearby tracks. The pet animal named Solomon was moving "at pace" on the line between Ascot and Bagshot, a South Western Railway spokesperson told Sky News. After spotting "the culprit" train staff managed to retrieve the tortoise and gave him a lift so he could be reunited with his owner.

 
 

Morning Report was written and edited by Arion McNicoll, Harriet Marsden, Sorcha Bradley, Julia O'Driscoll and Chas Newkey-Burden, with illustrations by Julia Wytrazek.

Image credits, from top: Janiecbros / Getty Images; Pedro Pardo / Pool / AFP via Getty Images; Mike Hewitt / Getty Images.