Hot December-February

Filed in archive Global Climate on March 17, 2007

This on the left is a NOAA photo i got from Sciendaily.com. The satellite image shows the global sea surface temperature anomalies for Jan. 22, 2007 which is the second warmest winter ocean-surface temperature recorded in 128 years.

According to the report:

The combined global land and ocean surface temperature was the sixth warmest on record in February, but a record warm January helped push the winter (December-February) to its highest value since records began in 1880 (1.30 degrees F/0.72 degrees C above the 20th century mean). El Niño conditions contributed to the season's record warmth, but the episode rapidly weakened in February, as ocean temperatures in the central equatorial Pacific cooled more than 0.5 degrees F/0.3 degrees C and were near average for the month.

Separately, the global December-February land-surface temperature was the warmest on record, while the ocean-surface temperature tied for second warmest in the 128-year period of record, approximately 0.1 degree F (0.06 degrees C) cooler than the record established during the very strong El Niño episode of 1997-1998.

During the past century, global surface temperatures have increased at a rate near 0.11 degrees F (0.06 degrees C) per decade, but the rate of increase has been three times larger since 1976, or 0.32 degrees F (0.18 degrees C) per decade, with some of the largest temperature increases occurring in the high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere.

And what about the US? We know things got warmer. The report says:

The winter temperature for the contiguous United States (based on preliminary data) was 33.6 degrees F (0.9 degrees C). The 20th century average is 33.0 degrees F (0.6 degrees C). Statewide temperatures were warmer than average from Florida to maine and from Michigan to Montana. Cooler-than-average temperatures occurred in the southern Plains and areas of the Southwest.

The 11th warmest December on record occurred in 2006.

Upper-level wind patterns brought unusually cold weather to the southern Plains and much of the West in January. Snow and ice extended as far south as Arizona, southern California and south Texas. More typical winter conditions finally arrived in the eastern United States by late January and a period of colder-than-normal temperatures persisted through President's Day weekend.

February was 1.8 degrees F (0.9 degrees C) below the 20th century average of 34.7 degrees F (1.5 degrees C), placing it in the top third coldest Februarys in the 113-year record for the contiguous U.S. Thirty-six states in the eastern two-thirds of the nation were cooler than average, while Texas and the eleven states of the West were near average to warmer-than-average.

The warmer-than-average winter temperatures in the Midwest and East helped reduce residential energy needs for the nation. Using the Residential Energy Demand Temperature Index (REDTI-an index developed at NOAA to relate energy usage to climate), the nation's residential energy demand was approximately three percent lower than what would have occurred under average climate conditions for the season.

Seasonal energy demand would have been even lower, if not for February's colder temperatures. For the month, temperature-related residential energy demand was approximately six percent higher than what would have occurred under average climate conditions for February.

For Alaska, both February (1.4 degrees F/0.8 degrees C) and winter (1.6 degrees F/0.9 degrees C) were warmer than average but far from the record warmth of 2003 and 2001, respectively.

I think no one is doubting the reality of climate change and global warming now. Are you still thinking its just a concept?

Read the entire report here.