Tag Archives: international

May 2018: Earth’s Fourth Warmest May on Record

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Our global temperature continued its upward trend last month. May 2018 marked not only the fourth warmest May on record, but also closed out the planet’s fourth warmest March to May season, known as meteorological spring in the northern hemisphere.

According to the State of the Climate report by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Earth’s combined average temperature for May – over both land and sea surfaces – was 60.04°F, which is 1.44°F above the 20th-century average. The years 2014-2018 now rank among the five warmest Mays on record.

This May also marked the 401st consecutive month with a global temperature above its long-term norm. That means the last time any month posted a below average reading was December 1984.

While heat dominated most of the planet this May, some places were particularly warm, including much of Europe and North America. Here in the contiguous US, it was our warmest May ever recorded. The previous record had been in place since 1934.

Globally, the three-month period of March, April, and May was also unusually warm. NOAA reports that Earth’s average temperature for the season was 1.48°F above the 20th century average of 56.7°F. That makes it the fourth warmest such period on record.

These soaring temperatures are largely attributed to the long-term trend of human-caused climate change. ENSO-neutral conditions prevailed in May, which means there was neither an El Niño nor a La Niña in the Pacific to influence global weather patterns.

Year to date, the first five months of 2018 tied 2010 as the fourth warmest such period of any year on record. Global temperature records date back to 1880.

May 2018 was the fourth warmest May ever recorded on Earth. Credit: NOAA

April 2018: Earth’s Third Warmest on Record

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Our global temperature continued its upward trend last month with April 2018 marking the third warmest April ever recorded on this planet. Only April 2016 and 2017 were warmer.

According to a report by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Earth’s combined average temperature for the month – over both land and sea surfaces – was 58.19°F. That is 1.49°F above the 20th-century average. April was also the 400th consecutive month with a global temperature above its long-term norm. That means the last time any month posted a below average reading was December 1984.

While heat dominated most of the planet this April, some places were particularly warm, including Central Europe, eastern Russia, and parts of both South America and Australia. These soaring global temperatures are largely attributed to the long-term trend of human-caused climate change. In fact, ENSO neutral conditions were present in the Pacific during April, meaning neither El Niño nor La Niña influenced temperatures.

For many people in the US, however, especially in the eastern part of the county, this April was relatively cold. For the lower 48 states as a whole, it was the 13th coldest April on record. To put this disparity into context, consider that the contiguous United States constitutes less than 2% of the total surface of the Earth. This detail highlights the fact that climate change is a complex global phenomenon that involves much more than the short-term weather that is happening in our own backyards.

Year to date, the first four months of 2018 were the fifth warmest such period of any year on record. Global temperature records date back to 1880.

Credit: NOAA

March 2018: Earth’s Fifth Warmest on Record

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Our global temperature continued its upward trend last month with March 2018 marking the fifth warmest March ever recorded on this planet. This latest milestone comes on the heels of the three warmest Marches on record – 2015, 2016, and 2017.

According to a report by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Earth’s combined average temperature for the month – over both land and sea surfaces – was 56.39°F. That is 1.49°F above the 20th-century average. March was also the 399th consecutive month with a global temperature above its long-term norm. That means the last time any month posted a below average reading was December 1984.

While heat dominated most of the planet this March, some places were particularly warm, including Alaska, northeastern Canada, and most of Asia. These soaring global temperatures are largely attributed to the long-term trend of human-caused climate change. In fact, La Niña conditions – the cooling counterpart of El Niño – were present in the Pacific during March.

However, for many people in the US, especially in the eastern part of the county, this March was relatively cold. To put this disparity into context, consider that the contiguous United States constitutes less than 2% of the total surface of the Earth. This detail highlights the fact that climate change is a complex global phenomenon that involves much more than the short-term weather that is happening in our own backyards.

Year to date, the first three months of 2018 were the sixth warmest such period of any year on record. Global temperature records date back to 1880.

March 2018 was the fifth warmest March on record for the planet. Credit: NOAA

Earth Posts 11th Warmest Feb and 5th Warmest Dec-Feb Season on Record

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Our global temperature continued its upward trend last month. February 2018 marked not only the eleventh warmest February on record, but also closed out the planet’s fifth warmest December – February season.

According to the State of the Climate report by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Earth’s combined average temperature for February – over both land and sea surfaces – was 55.07°F, which is 1.17°F above the 20th-century average. This February also marked the 398th consecutive month with a global temperature above its long-term norm. That means the last time any month posted a below average reading was December 1984.

The three-month period of December, January, and February – meteorological winter in the northern hemisphere – was also unusually warm. NOAA reports that Earth’s average temperature for the season was 1.31°F above the 20th century average of 53.8°F. That makes it the fifth warmest such period on record.

While heat dominated most of the planet this season, some places were particularly warm, including Alaska, northern Russia, and parts of the Middle East. Here in the contiguous US, this winter ranked among warmest third of the nation’s 124-year period of record.

These soaring temperatures are largely attributed to the long-term trend of human-caused climate change. In fact, La Niña conditions – the cool counterpart of El Niño – were present in the Pacific during all three months of the season.

Global temperature records date back to 1880.

The Dec 2017- Feb 2018 season was the planet’s 5th warmest on record. Credit: NOAA

January 2018: Earth’s Fifth Warmest on Record

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Our global temperature continued its upward trend last month with January 2018 marking the fifth warmest January ever recorded on this planet. The last four Januarys now rank among the five warmest on record.

According to a report by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Earth’s combined average temperature for the month – over both land and sea surfaces – was 54.88°F. That is 1.28°F above the 20th-century average. January was also the 397th consecutive month with a global temperature above its long-term norm. That means the last time any month posted a below average reading was December 1984.

While heat dominated most of the planet this January, some places were particularly warm, including the western half of the United States and most of Europe. For the contiguous US as a whole, January ranked among warmest third of the nation’s 124-year period of record.

Coming on the heels of 2017 – Earth’s third warmest year on record and warmest year without an El Niño – these soaring temperatures are largely attributed to the long-term trend of human-caused climate change. In fact, La Niña conditions – the cool counterpart of El Niño – were present in the Pacific during January.

Global temperature records date back to 1880.

January 2018 was the planet’s 5th warmest January on record. Credit: NOAA

The Outlook for the Winter Olympics in a Warming World

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Millions of American are tuning in to watch the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea and one of the ads they are seeing features a strong message on sustainability from Toyota. Showing ice sculptures of athletes melting, the company is promoting their hybrid vehicles and says it wants “to help keep our winters, winter”. It is a poignant and timely message as our global temperature warms and the viability of many previous Winter Olympic host sites is declining.

Since the first winter games were held in 1924, the month of February – the traditional time of year for this global event – has increased an average of 1.82°F worldwide. If this current rate of warming continues, according to Climate Matters, only 6 of the 19 past host sites will be reliable future venues by the end of the century. Under a business as usual scenario, previous host cities, on average, are expected to see a temperature increase of 7.9°F by the 2080s. Significant cuts to greenhouse gas emissions would reduce that warming to 4.86°F

Warming winters also affect athletes’ ability to train. In the US, NOAA says winter temperatures have increased almost twice the rate of summer temperatures. If this trend continues, some areas are likely to see the ski season cut in half by 2050. This truncated season correspondingly means an economic hit for the winter sports and recreation industry. These businesses, according to Protect Our Winters, contribute $72 billion to the national economy annually and support more than 600,000 jobs.

The 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia were the warmest winter games on record.

Credit: Climate Central

2017: Third Warmest Year on Record for Planet and the Warmest Year Without an El Niño

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It is official, 2017 was the third warmest year ever recorded on this planet. Only 2015 and 2016 were warmer.

According to a report by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Earth’s combined average temperature for the year – over both land and sea surfaces – was 58.51°F. That is a staggering 1.51°F above the 20th-century average.

2017 also marked the 41st consecutive year with a global temperature above its long-term norm. That means the last time any year posted a below average reading was 1976.

While heat dominated the planet last year, some places were particularly warm. Here in the contiguous US, it was our third warmest year on record.

The exceptional warmth of 2017 is largely attributed to the long-term trend of human-caused climate change. While El Niño conditions helped influence record heat in the past, 2017 was the warmest year on record without an El Niño being present in the Pacific. In fact, ENSO neutral conditions prevailed for most of the year and La Niña – the cool counterpart of El Niño – developed in the autumn.

Looking at the bigger picture, nine of the ten warmest years on record have occurred since the beginning of the 21st century. Three of those years – 2014, 2015, and 2016 – were back-to-back record breakers. As greenhouse gases – the main drivers of global warming – continue to spew into the atmosphere, temperatures will continue to rise and records will likely continue to fall.

Global temperature records date back to 1880.

2017 was the third warmest year on record for our planet. Credit: NOAA

Credit: NOAA

Planet Posts Fifth Warmest November and Fourth Warmest Autumn on Record

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Our global temperature continued its upward trend last month. November 2017 tied November 2016 as the fifth warmest November on record and closed out the planet’s fourth warmest September to November period, which is known as meteorological autumn in the northern hemisphere.

According to the State of the Climate report by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Earth’s combined average temperature for November – over both land and sea surfaces – was 56.55°F, which is 1.35°F above the 20th-century average. November also marked the 395th consecutive month with a global temperature above its long-term norm. That means the last time any month posted a below average reading was December 1984.

The three-month period of September, October, and November was also unusually warm. NOAA reports that Earth’s average temperature for the season was 1.35°F above the 20th century average of 57.1°F. That makes it the fourth warmest such period on record.

While heat dominated most of the planet this season, some places were particularly warm, including parts of southern North America and southern Asia. For the contiguous US as a whole, it was our tenth warmest autumn on record.

These soaring temperatures are largely attributed to the long-term trend of human-caused climate change. In fact, a weak La Niña – the cool counterpart of El Niño – developed in the tropical Pacific during October and prevailed in November.

Year to date, the first eleven months of 2017 were the third warmest such period of any year on record. With only one month left, 2017 is expected to end up among the top three warmest years ever recorded on this planet and become the warmest year without an El Niño. Global temperature records date back to 1880.

Credit: NOAA/NCEI

Outcomes of the UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn

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The UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany, known as COP 23, concluded on Saturday. Its goal was to draft the rules and processes needed to translate the spirit of the historic Paris Agreement into action.

Years in the making, the 2015 Paris Agreement set the target of holding global warming to 2°C (3.6°F) above pre-industrial levels. To achieve this goal, nearly 200 countries submitted individual voluntary emissions reduction plans known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs). But when added up, the current collection of NDCs, which vary widely in ambition, will miss the 2°C goal.  In fact, they would allow for a 3.2°C (5.76°F) rise in the global temperature. This is why the agreement requires countries to reassess their plans every five years once it goes into effect in 2020.

One of the main goals of the Bonn meeting was to create a standardized rulebook for the monitoring and reporting of these independent undertakings. While some progress was made, the negotiators agreed to wait until the end of 2018 to finalize these vital rules. However, they did agree to begin discussing the NDC shortfall and the need to increase ambitions before 2020 at the next COP. This process was labeled the “Talanoa Dialogue”, which is a tradition of inclusive and transparent conversation used to resolve differences without blame in Fiji – the official host of this year’s conference.

The issue of financing climate adaptation – the touchy subject having wealthy nations pay to help poor nations adapt to climate change – was also pushed down the road. However, the delegates did establish an expert group to discuss the issue of “loss and damages”.

Although ratified in record time, the Paris Agreement is a fragile accord. All commitments are voluntary and vulnerable to the political will of individual governments – both now and in the future. Moreover, there are no penalties for those who do not live up to their promises.

That said, on the second day of this two-week conference, war-torn Syria announced that it would sign the Paris pact. This move now leaves the US as the only country not part of the global agreement. The Trump administration announced its intention to withdraw the US from the accord in June.

Outside of the formal COP meetings, the positive spirit of the Paris Agreement pushed forward. Nineteen countries and several sub-national actors (states and cities) created the “Powering Past Coal Alliance”. Its aim is to phase out the use of coal, the most carbon-intensive fossil fuel, by 2030. According to the International Energy Agency, coal still powers 40% of the world’s electricity.

The Bonn meeting was the 23rd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It was lead by Fiji but held in Germany because of logistical concerns on the small island nation.The next conference (COP 24) will take place in December 2018 in Katowice, Poland.

Credit: UN

October 2017: Earth’s Fourth Warmest on Record

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Our global temperature continued its upward trend last month with October 2017 tying October 2003 as the fourth warmest October ever recorded on this planet. Only October 2014, 2015, and 2016 were warmer.

According to the State of the Climate Report by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Earth’s combined average temperature for the month – over both land and sea surfaces – was 58.41°F. That is 1.31°F above the 20th-century average. October was also the 394th consecutive month with a global temperature above its long-term norm. That means the last time any month posted a below average reading was December 1984.

It is also interesting to note that the ten warmest Octobers on record have all occurred in the 21st century.

While heat dominated most of the planet last month, some places were particularly warm, including much of Europe, northern Russia, and the northeastern United States. For the contiguous US as a whole, the month ranked among the warmest third of the historical record.

These soaring temperatures are largely attributed to the long-term trend of human-caused climate change. In fact, a weak La Niña – the cool counterpart of El Niño – developed in the tropical Pacific during October.

Year to date, the first ten months of 2017 were the third warmest such period of any year on record. With only two months left, 2017 is expected to end up among the top three warmest years ever recorded on this planet. Global temperature records date back to 1880.

October 2017 was the planet’s 4th warmest October on record. Credit: NOAA