This year's summer was the hottest ever recorded in the Northern Hemisphere.
New figures from the US weather agency NOAA show that the period June, July and August was 1.17 degrees Celsius warmer than the average for the entire 20th century, writes The Guardian.
August was 1.69 degrees Celsius warmer than average, but became the second warmest August in the last 141 years. August 2016 was even warmer.
According to NOAA – whose data goes back to 1880 – 2020 is therefore well on its way to becoming one of the five warmest years on record. In Europe, Asia and the Caribbean, it has never been warmer, calculated between January and August, and in South America it is the second warmest year to date.
The Southern Hemisphere, which is currently experiencing spring, has registered its third warmest winter.
The high temperatures have, among other things, led to a reduced ice cover in the Arctic. During August, the ice was a record low, nearly 30 percent less than the average for the years 1981–2010. In contrast, the ice cover in Antarctica – where it has been the darkest winter during the months in question – is at a near-normal level, and is at its highest level since 2016.
Source: TT
