FIRE-EARTH Focus: Greece

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[Prepared by FIRE-EARTH Science Team.]

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Earth Experiences 2nd Warmest Year to Date

2nd warmest year to date and 3rd warmest May on record

Year to date – January through May 2017

The year-to-date (January–May) globally-average temperature across land and ocean surfaces for 2017 was 0.92°C (1.66°F) above the 20th century average of 13.1°C (55.5°F). This was the second highest January–May period in the 138-year record, falling behind the record year 2016 by 0.17°C (0.31°F).

May 2017 saw the average global temperature rising 0.83°C (1.49°F) above the 20th century average of 14.8°C (58.6°F) and the third highest May in the 138-year global records, behind 2016 (+0.89°C / +1.60°F) and 2015 (+0.86°C / +1.55°F), according to researchers at NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information.

Warmer-than-average lands and oceans

The globally averaged land-surface temperature (seventh warmest for the month of May) and the sea-surface temperature (third warmest) ranked second highest on record for the March-to-May season and the year to date.

Both poles recorded below-average sea ice again

The average Arctic sea ice extent for May dropped 5.3 percent below the 1981-2010 average, the fifth smallest for the month since satellite records began in 1979. The average Antarctic sea ice extent was 10.6 percent below average, the second smallest on record for May behind 1980.

 

SST

The average May temperature for the global oceans was 0.71°C (1.28°F) above the 20th century average of 16.3°C (61.3°F). This was the third highest May global ocean temperature in the 138-year record, trailing behind 2016 (+0.76°C / +1.37°F) and 2015 (+0.72°C / +1.30°F).

LST

The global land-only surface temperature was the coolest May land temperature since 2011 and the seventh highest since global records began in 1880 at 1.15°C (2.07°F) above the 20th century average 11.1°C (52.0°F).

Portugal [Apocalyptic Fires Incinerate Victims Fleeing in their Cars]

Unusually warm temperatures engulfed Portugal during May 2017. Portugal’s national average mean temperature was 18.47°C (65.25°F) or 2.74°C (4.93°F) above average—the third highest May temperature since national records began in 1931, trailing behind 2011 and 2015. The nation’s average maximum temperature was 24.96°C (76.93°F), which is 4.0°C (7.2°F) above average and the second highest May maximum temperature since 1931.

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate: Global Climate Report for May 2017, published online June 2017, retrieved on June 20, 2017 from https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/201705

FIRE-EARTH E-E ALERT – 062001

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