Near-Record Global Warmth Continued in October

https://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/nearrecord-global-warmth-continued-in-october

By: Jeff Masters , 6:24 PM GMT on November 17, 2016

October 2016 was Earth's third warmest October since record keeping began in 1880, said NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) on Thursday. October 2016 was 0.73°C (1.31°F) warmer than the 20th-century October average; the only warmer Octobers were during the two previous years, 2015 and 2014. NASA reported that October 2016 was the second warmest October in its database, behind October 2015. October 2016 was Earth’s coolest month (relative to average) since November 2014, which was 0.69°C (1.24°F) above average. This October was also the first month since April 2015 that failed to set a global heat record in either the NASA or NOAA database.

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As we blogged about on November 11, a weak La Niña event is now underway in the Eastern Pacific. The cool waters present in that region have helped cool the planet slightly below the record warm levels observed during the strong El Niño event of 2015 - 2016. The fact that October 2016 was still the 2nd to 3rd warmest October on record despite the presence of La Niña can mostly be attributed to the steady build-up of heat-trapping greenhouse gases due to human activities.

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Ocean-only temperatures this October were the second warmest on record, while land-only temperatures were the 16th warmest on record. (Since most of Earth’s surface is covered by ocean, the land-plus-ocean reading is dominated by the ocean-only temperatures, thus keeping October 2016 so warm globally.) Including 2016, the past five Octobers (2012–2016) have had the five highest October global ocean temperatures in the 137-year record.

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October 2016 Arctic sea ice extent was the lowest in the 38-year satellite record, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). The new record low was due, in large part, to high sea surface temperatures in open water areas and unusually high October air temperatures that extended from the surface through a considerable depth of the atmosphere. Amazingly, temperatures in the Arctic have spiked in mid-November to even higher values, and were 20°C (36°F) above average north of 80°N this week (see Figure 3). The unusual warmth in the Arctic has created an unusual amount of open water, which has provided high amounts of moisture to the atmosphere. As a result, widespread snows fell in regions where it was cold enough to snow; snow cover in the Northern Hemisphere in October was the third greatest on record.

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No nations or territories set all-time heat or cold records in October 2016. From January through October 31, 2016, a total of 21 nations or territories tied or set all-time records for their hottest temperature in recorded history. This breaks the record of eighteen all-time heat records in 2010 for the greatest number of such records set in one year. Also, one all-time cold temperature record has been set so far in 2016 (in Hong Kong.) For a detailed list of these all-time records, see our September global climate summary post.

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tags: extreme weather