Image of the Day: No. of Days with Extreme Heat

2017 third-warmest year on record globally

Global land and ocean combined surface temperature reached a near-record high

2017 was the third-warmest year on record globally, behind 2016 (first) and 2015, according to the 28th annual State of the Climate report. The planet also experienced record-high greenhouse gas concentrations as well as rises in sea level.

Sea level rise hit a new high

Highest levels of of greenhouse gases on record

Heat in the upper ocean hit a record high

Record low Arctic maximum sea ice coverage

Record low Antarctic sea ice coverage

Image of the Day: No. of Days with Extreme Heat [NOAA]

• Access highlights from the BAMS State of the Climate in 2017 report.

 

Polar Regions Experience Smallest Sea Ice Extents for February

TG-FEWW-CM

February 2017 Second Warmest on Record —NOAA

It was the 41st consecutive February and the 386th consecutive month with temperatures exceeding the 20th century average.

The combined average temperature over global land and ocean surfaces for February 2017 was 0.98°C (1.76°F) above the 20th century average of 12.1°C (53.9°F)—the second highest for February in the 138-year period of record, trailing behind the record set in 2016 (+1.20°C / +2.16°F) and ahead of 2015 by +0.10°C (+0.18°F).

February 2017 was the highest monthly temperature departure from average since April 2016 (+1.07°C / +1.93°F) and the seventh highest monthly temperature departure among all months (1646) on record. This was the 41st consecutive February and the 386th consecutive month with temperatures above the 20th century average. The February global land and ocean temperature has increased at an average rate of +0.07°C (+0.13°F) per decade since 1880; however, the average rate of increase is twice as great since 1980.

 

The average global temperature across land surfaces was 1.78°C (3.20°F) above the 20th century average of 3.2°C (37.8°F) and the second highest February global land temperature on record, trailing behind 2016 by 0.50°C (0.90°F) and ahead of 2015 by 0.09°C (0.16°F).

This was also the highest monthly temperature departure from average since April 2016 (+1.86°C / +3.35°F) and the seventh highest among all months on record.

For the oceans, the February globally-averaged sea surface temperature was 0.69°C (1.24°F) above the 20th century average of 15.9°C (60.6°F), the second highest for February on record, behind the record-breaking year 2016 (+0.80°C / +1.44°F) and surpassing 2015 by +0.08°C (+0.14°F). February 2017 was the highest monthly temperature departure from average since October 2016 (+0.72°C / +1.30°F) and the 22nd highest among all months on record.

The average global sea surface temperature for the year-to-date was also the second highest in the 137-year record, at 0.67°C (1.21°F) above average, behind 2016 by 0.16°C (0.29°F).

The December–February seasonal global land and ocean temperature was 0.89°C (1.60°F) above the 20th century average of 12.1°C (53.8°F)—the second highest temperature departure from average for December–February in the 1880–2017 record, behind 2015/2016 by 0.23°C (0.41°F).

This was the highest three-month temperature departure since July–September 2016 (+0.89°C / +1.60°F) and tied with May–July 2016, June–August 2016, and July–September 2016 as the tenth highest three-month temperature departure from average since 1880.

The global land and ocean temperature during the three-month period of December–February has increased at an average rate of +0.07°C (+0.13°F) per decade since 1880; however, the average rate of increase is twice as great since 1980.

The globally-averaged temperature across land surfaces for December–February was also the second highest on record for the season, at 1.52°C (2.74°F) above the 20th century average of 3.2°C (37.8°F), behind 2015/2016 by 0.39°C (0.70°F).

This was the highest three-month temperature departure from average since March–May 2016 (1.81°C / 3.26°F) and the eighth highest in the 138-year record.

Across the world’s oceans, the December–February average sea surface temperature was 0.66°C (1.19°F) above the 20th century average of 15.8°C (60.5°F)—the second highest for December–February on record, trailing 2015/2016 by 0.17°C (0.31°F).

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate: Global Analysis for February 2017, published online March 2017, retrieved on March 18, 2017 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/201702.

January Polar Ice Extents Smallest on Record

January Third Warmest Recorded Globally

Arctic Sea Ice Extent. January sea ice extent was 8.6 percent below the 1981-2010 – the smallest January sea ice extent since satellite records began in 1979.

Antarctic Sea Ice Extent. January sea ice extent was 22.8 percent below the 1981-2010 – the smallest January sea ice extent on record.

Global Temperatures

The globally averaged temperature over land and ocean surfaces for January 2017 was 0.88°C (1.58°F) above the 20th century average of 12.0°C (53.6°F). This was the third highest January temperature in the 1880–2017 record, behind 2016 (highest) and 2007 (second highest).

Global land surface temperature was also third highest for the month of January at 1.54°C (2.77°F) above the 20th century average of 2.8°C (37.0°F).

For the oceans, the globally-averaged temperature departure of +0.65°C (+1.17°F) from the 20^th century average was the second highest on record for January, behind 2016.

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate: Global Analysis for January 2017, published online February 2017, retrieved on February 18, 2017 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/201701.

2015 Could Become Warmest Year on Record

Three More Global Temperature Records Broken —NOAA

State of the Climate Report: November 2015

• November 2015 was warmest November on record Globally
• September–November was the warmest such period
• Year-to-date was record warm

The November average temperature across land and ocean surfaces (SST) rose  1.75°F (0.97°C) above the 20th century average of 12.9°C (55.2°F), the highest for November in the 1880–2015 record, surpassing the previous record set in 2013 by 0.27°F (0.15°C).

• November warmth broke a monthly global temperature record for the seventh consecutive month.

• The temperature departure from average for November is also the second highest among all months in the 136-year period of record. The highest departure of 0.99°C (1.79°F) occurred last month.

• Globally-averaged land surface temperature for November was 2.36°F (1.31°C) above the 20th century average.

• Globally-averaged SST was 1.51°F (0.84°C) above the 20th century average. This was the highest for November in the 1880–2015 record, surpassing the previous record set last year by 0.36°F (0.20°C).

• The average Arctic sea ice extent for November 2015 was 360,000 square miles (~ 930,000km² ), or 8.3 percent below the 1981–2010 average. This was the sixth smallest November extent since records began in 1979.

• Antarctic sea ice extent during November 2015 was 80,000 square miles (1.2 percent) above the 1981–2010 average, the 14th largest for November in the 37-year period of record.

November 2015 Blended Land and Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies in degrees Celsius

Autumn Temperatures

Additionally, September, October, and November 2015 had the three highest monthly temperature departures on record.

Out of 1,630 monthly records (1880–2015 record):

• Eight months of 2015 are among the 10 highest monthly temperature departures from their respective averages.

• All 11 months of 2015  so far are among the 25 highest.

Selected Climate Events & Anomalies for November 2015

September–November  Temperature

The September–November seasonal temperature was 0.96°C (1.73°F) above the 20^th century average of 14.0°C (57.1°F). This marks the highest departure from average for the season in the 136-year period of record, surpassing the previous record set last year by 0.21°C (0.38°F).

The globally-averaged temperature across land surfaces was also the highest on record for September–November, at 1.27°C (2.29°F) above the 20^th century average of 9.1°C (48.3°F).

• Most of the Americas from Mexico through the northern half of South America were record warm, as were scattered regions across Africa, southern and southeastern Asia, and southern Australia.

• Across the world’s oceans, the September–November average sea surface temperature was 0.84°C (1.51°F) above the 20^th century average of 16.0°C (60.7°F), the highest for September–November on record, surpassing the previous record set last year by 0.27°C (0.15°F).

Year-to-date Temperature

The first 11 months of 2015 were the warmest such period on record across the world’s land and ocean surfaces, at 0.87°C (1.57°F) above the 20^th century average of 14.0°C (57.2°F), surpassing the previous record set last year by 0.14°C (0.25°F).

• Nine of the first eleven months in 2015 have been record warm for their respective months, with January second warmest for January and April third warmest.

• The December global temperature would have to be at least 0.81°C (1.46°F) below average—or 0.24°C (0.43°F) colder than the current record low December temperature of 1916—for 2015 to not become the warmest year in the 136-year period of record.

The average global sea surface temperature for the year-to-date was the highest for January–November in the 136-year period of record, at 0.72°C (1.30°F) above average, surpassing the previous record set last year by 0.09°C (0.16°F).

The average land surface temperature was also record high, at 1.27°C (2.29°F) above average, surpassing the previous record of 2010 by 0.15°C (0.27°F).

January–November 2015 Blended Land and Sea Surface Temperature Percentiles

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate: Global Analysis for November 2015, published online December 2015, retrieved on December 18, 2015 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/201511.

Climate Extremes Rule!

U.S. Climate Extremes, Significant Events November, Fall 2015

November, saw 4,502 record warm daily high (1,642) and low (2,860) temperature records, which is five times the 866 record cold daily high (494) and low (372) temperature records, NOAA reported.

U.S. Selected Significant Climate Anomalies and Events November and Autumn 2015 – NOAA

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Climate Highlights — (September–November)

• The September-November contiguous U.S. average temperature was record warm at 56.8°F, 3.3°F above the 20^th century average. This surpassed the previous record warm autumn of 1963 which had a temperature of 56.6°F.

• Every state across the contiguous U.S. and Alaska had an above-average autumn temperature. Forty-one states across the Rockies, Great Plains, Midwest, Northeast, and Southeast were much warmer than average. Florida tied its warmest autumn on record with a statewide temperature of 75.5°F, 3.6°F above average.

• Above-average November temperatures were widespread across the eastern half of the nation, where 32 states were much warmer than average. New Jersey had its warmest November on record with a statewide temperature of 49.7°F, 6.6°F above average.

• Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island had a record warm autumn maximum temperature.

• The autumn minimum (nighttime) temperature was 45.1°F, 3.7°F above average, the warmest on record. This bested the previous record set in 1998 by 0.3°F.

• Minimum temperature in Colorado, Florida, New Mexico, North Dakota, Nebraska, and Minnesota was record warm.

• South Carolina had its wettest autumn on record, partially driven by historic rainfall in early October. South Carolina’s autumn precipitation total was 23.62 (600mm) inches, 13.77 inches above average, and bested the previous record of 18.42 inches set in 1959.

• Based on REDTI, the contiguous U.S. temperature-related energy demand during November was 68.0 percent below average and the fourth lowest in the 1895-2015 period of record.

To avoid many overlapping or crowded dots on the map, a subset of only about 200 stations across the United States were plotted. There are many stations having “top three” or “bottom three” years that are not shown here. The stations under consideration are listed in other supplemental pages (temperature, precipitation).

Related Links

• November gridded temperature maps
• November gridded precipitation maps

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate: National Overview for November 2015, published online December 2015, retrieved on December 15, 2015 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/national/201511.

Record High Global Temperature in September, January–September

Each of global oceans and global land temperatures also highest on record for the periods: NCDC/NOAA

State of the Climate Report – Blog Summary of Global highlights: September 2015

• The combined average temperature for global land and ocean surfaces in September 2015 was the highest for September in the 136-year period of record, at 0.90°C (1.62°F) above the 20^th century average of 15.0°C (59.0°F).  It surpassed previous record set in 2014 by 0.19°C.
  • September’s high temperature was also the greatest rise above average for any month in the 136-year historical record, surpassing the previous record set in both February and March this year by 0.02°F (0.01°C).
  • Seven months this year, including the past five, have been record warm for their respective months. January was the second warmest January on record and April third warmest.
• The September globally-averaged land surface temperature was 1.16°C above the 20^th century average. This was also the highest for September in the 1880–2015 record.
  • Record warmth was observed across much of South America and parts of Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Asia.
•  September globally-averaged sea surface temperature was 0.81°C (1.46°F) above the 20^th century average of 16.2°C (61.1°F), the highest departure for September on record, beating the previous record set last year by 0.07°C (0.13°F).

Blog Summary of Global highlights: Year-to-date (January–September 2015)

• The year-to-date temperature across global land and ocean surfaces was 0.85°C above the 20^th century average. This was the highest for January–September in the 1880–2015 record, surpassing the previous record set in 2014 by 0.12°C.
• The year-to-date globally-averaged land surface temperature was also the highest for January–September in the 1880–2015 record at 1.29°C above the 20^th century average. This value surpassed the previous record of 2007 by 0.17°C.
• The year-to-date globally-averaged sea surface temperature was 0.69°C above the 20^th century average and the highest for January–September in the 1880–2015 record. This value surpassed the previous record of 2010 by 0.06°C.

Precipitation

September rainfall across Australia was the third lowest for the month in the 116-year period of record. At only 6.2 mm, it was 37 percent of average precipitation.

The Southwest Monsoon rainfall in India, for the seasonal period June 1^st to September 30^th, was 86 percent of the 1951–2000 average. About half of India received deficient rainfall (less than 80 percent of average).

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate: Global Analysis for September 2015, published online October 2015, retrieved on October 22, 2015 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/201509.

State of the Climate Report – Blog Summary of Global highlights: August 2015

• Global temperature at record high in August, June–August, January–August

Record High Global Temperature

Global temperature at record high in August, June–August, January–August

Each of global land temperature, SST also highest on record for same periods

The combined average temperature for global land and ocean surfaces (SST) for August 2015 was 0.88°C (1.58°F) above the 20th century average of 15.6°C (60.1°F) and the highest August in the 136-year record, according to the latest State of the Climate Report prepared by NCDC/NOAA.

• August was the sixth month in 2015 that broke the monthly temperature record (February, March, May, June, July, and August).
• August 2015 tied with January 2007 as the third warmest monthly departure from average for any of the 1,628 months since records began in January 1880, behind February 2015 and March 2015 (+0.89°C / +1.60°F).
• Five of the ten largest monthly temperature departures from average have occurred in 2015.

Global land surface temperature for August

The average global land surface temperature for August 2015 was 1.14°C (2.05°F) above the 20th century average—the highest August value in the 1880–2015 record, exceeding the previous record set in 1998 by +0.13°C (+0.23°F).

SST for August

The August 2015 globally-averaged SST was 0.78°C (1.40°F) above the 20th century average—the highest temperature for any month in the 1880–2015 record and surpassing the previous record set in July 2015 by 0.04° (0.07°F).

Combined average land temp. and SST (June-August)

Global land and SST temperature for June–August was 0.85°C (1.53°F) above the 20th century average, surpassing the previous record set in 2014 by 0.11°C (0.20°F). June–August 2015 tied with February–April 2015 as the second warmest three-month period temperature departure from average, behind January–March 2015 (+0.86°C / +1.55°F).

• Much of the world’s land surface was much-warmer-than-average.
• Much of South America and parts of the western contiguous U.S. and parts of Africa and Asia experienced record high temperatures.

Global land surface temperature for (June–August)

Average global land surface temperature was 1.10°C (1.98°F) above the 20th century average—the highest for June–August in the 1880–2015 record and topping the previous record set in 2010 by 0.07°C (0.13°F).

SST for (June–August)

The globally-averaged SST for the three-month period was 0.75°C (1.35°F) above the 20th century average and the highest departure from average for the season on record. This value exceeded the previous record set in 2014 by 0.06°C (0.11°F).

• A large swath across the eastern and central tropical Pacific Ocean and parts of the Indian and Atlantic experienced record warm.
• A patch of much-cooler-than-average temperatures observed across the North Atlantic Ocean.

Global land and SST (January–August period)

Global land and SST temperature during the first eight months of 2015, January–August period, was the highest ever recorded at 0.84°C (1.51°F) above the 20th century average, exceeding the previous record set in 2010 by 0.10°C (0.18°F).

• Much of South America and parts of North America, Africa, Europe, and Asia had record warmth.
• A large portion of the northeastern and equatorial Pacific Ocean observed record warmth.
• Other major basins observed record warmth in some areas.

Global land temperature for January–August 2015 was 1.29°C (2.32°F) above the 20th century average—the highest January–August during 1880–2015 record and topping the previous record set in 2007 by 0.16°C (0.29°F).

SST for the same period was 0.68°C (1.22°F) above the 20th century average and the highest January–August on record, surpassing the previous record set in 2014 by 0.07°C (0.13°F).

Sea ice extent for August 2015

August average Arctic sea ice extent was 1.61 million square kilometers (620,000 square miles), or about 22.3 percent below the 1981–2010 average, making it the fourth smallest August extent since records began in 1979.

Antarctic sea ice extent during August 2015 was 77,700 square kilometers (30,000 square miles), or about 0.5 percent below the 1981–2010 average.

• In contrast, Antarctic sea ice extent has been record/ near-record large in recent years.
• First month since November 2011 that the Antarctic sea ice extent was below average.

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate: Global Analysis for August 2015, published online September 2015, retrieved on September 18, 2015 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/201508.

Earth’s Fever Continues: Warmest May on Record

Year-to-date also record warm: Report

The globally averaged temperature over land and ocean surfaces for May 2015 was 15.67°C (60.17°F), the highest for the month since record keeping began in 1880. Globally averaged temperature for March–May and the year-to-date (January–May) were also record highs, according to the State of the Climate Report.

• The combined average temperature across global land and ocean surfaces for May was 0.87°C (1.57°F) above the 20^th century average of 14.8°C (58.6°F)—the highest for May in the 136-year period of record, topping the previous record set in 2014 by 0.08°C (0.14°F).

• The globally-averaged sea surface temperature was 0.72°C (1.30°F) above the 20^th century average of 16.3°C (61.3°F)—the highest ever recorded for the month, topping record set in 2014 by 0.07°C (0.13°F).

• The average global temperature across land surfaces was 1.28°C (2.30°F) above the 20^th century average of 11.1°C (52.0°F), tying with 2012 as the highest May temperature on record.

• The average Arctic sea ice extent for May was about 1.89 million km² (730,000 square miles), or 5.5 percent below the 1981–2010 average, making it the third smallest May extent since records began in 1979.  [The smallest sea ice extent occurred in May 2004, when the cover shrank to about 1.82million km² (703,000 square miles,) said the report

• Antarctic sea ice during May was about 1.3 million km² (500,000 square miles), or 12.1 percent above the 1981–2010 average. The May extent was the largest Antarctic sea ice extent on record, exceeding the previous record set in 2014 by about 52,000km² (20,000 square miles).

January – May 2015

• The first five months of 2015 were the warmest such period on record across the world’s land and ocean surfaces, at 0.85°C (1.53°F) above the 20^th century average, surpassing the previous record set in 2010 by 0.09°C (0.16°F).

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate: Global Analysis for May 2015, published online June 2015, retrieved on June 19, 2015 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/201505.

May Global Temperature Reaches All-time High

EXTREME WEATHER & CLIMATIC EVENTS
RISING GLOBAL TEMPERATURES
CROP DISASTERS
SCENARIOS 900, 777, 555, 444, 111, 03
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Global Temperature Analysis – May 2014

The combined average temperature over global land and ocean surfaces for May 2014 reached record highest for this month, at 0.74°C (1.33°F) above the 20th century average of 14.8°C (58.6°F), according to NOAA.

“This surpassed the previous record high anomaly of 0.72 degrees Celsius set in 2010,” said NOAA in its monthly state of the climate report.

“Four of the five warmest Mays on record have occurred in the past five years: 2010 (second warmest), 2012 (third warmest), 2013 (fifth warmest), and 2014 (warmest).”

Fourth warmest May on record was in 1998.

Other Global Highlights

• The global land surface temperature was 1.13°C (2.03°F) above the 20th century average of 11.1°C (52.0°F), the fourth highest for May on record. For the ocean, the May global sea surface temperature was 0.59°C (1.06°F) above the 20th century average of 16.3°C (61.3°F), making it the record highest for May and tying with June 1998, October 2003, and July 2009 as the highest departure from average for any month on record.

• The combined global land and ocean average surface temperature for the March–May period was 0.74°C (1.33°F) above the 20th century average of 13.7°C (56.7°F), making it the second warmest such period on record, behind 2010.

• The March–May worldwide land surface temperature was 1.26°C (2.27°F) above the 20th century average, the third warmest such period on record. The global ocean surface temperature for the same period was 0.54°C (0.97°F) above the 20th century average, also the third warmest March–May on record.

• The combined global land and ocean average surface temperature for the January–May period (year-to-date) was 0.66°C (1.19°F) above the 20th century average of 13.1°C (55.5°F), the fifth warmest such period on record.

• While most parts of the globe experienced warmer-than-average temperatures in May, record warmth occurred across eastern Kazakhstan, parts of Indonesia, and central and northwestern Australia.

• May 2014 marked the 39th consecutive May and 351st consecutive month with a global temperature above the 20th century average.

Past Decade Warmest on Record

Earth has been growing warmer since the 1950s

Past Decade Warmest on Record According to Scientists in 48 Countries: NOAA

The 2009 State of the Climate report highlights 10 key climate indicators based on scientific evidence that the world is warming.  “More than 300 scientists from 160 research groups in 48 countries contributed to the report, which confirms that the past decade was the warmest on record and that the Earth has been growing warmer over the last 50 years.” A Report said.

This is one of a very few worthwhile studies carried out by the scientific community. Alas, they only tell you the result when it’s practically too late to do much about it.

Ten Indicators of a Heating World

Click image to enlarge. Source: NOAA

“The temperature increase of one degree Fahrenheit over the past 50 years may seem small, but it has already altered our planet,” said Deke Arndt, co-editor of the report and chief of the Climate Monitoring Branch of NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center. “Glaciers and sea ice are melting, heavy rainfall is intensifying and heat waves are more common. And, as the new report tells us, there is now evidence that over 90 percent of warming over the past 50 years has gone into our ocean.”

The 10 key global heating indicators:

• RISING
  • Land Surface Air Temperature
  • Sea-surface Temperature
  • Marine Air Temperature
  • Sea Level
  • NH (March-April) Snow Cover
  • Tropospheric Temperature
  • Ocean Heat Content (0-700m)
  • Specific Humidity

• DECLINING
  • September Arctic Sea-Ice Extent
  • Glacier Mass Balance
  • Stratospheric Temperature [Stratospheric temperature decline is also influenced by ozone depletion.]

Report Highlights:

• High Resolution (10.5 MB)
• Low Resolution (2.4 MB)

Full Report:

• High Resolution (110.2 MB)
• Low Resolution (6.6 MB)

April had 195 reported tornadoes

U.S. April Weather Was Hot and Dry

April Saw Above-Normal Temperatures and Below-Normal Precipitation: NOAA

According to NOAA’s State of the Climate report, the April 2010 average temperature for the contiguous United States was 54.3 degrees F, some 2.3 degrees F above the long-term (1901-2000) average  making it the 14th warmest April on record. The average precipitation was 2.18 inches, or 0.25 inch below the long-term average.

NOAA monthly analysis is prepared by NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, NC.

U.S. Temperature Highlights

Source: NOAA. Click image to enlarge.

• Above-normal temperatures caused by warm and dry weather from high-pressure areas experienced by most states east of the Rocky Mountains. Only California, Nevada and Oregon experienced cooler-than-average temperatures last month.
• Northeast and the East North Central Region: Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan experienced their second warmest April ever.
• Central climate region: West Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri had their  fourth warmest April for that region. [link to regional map]

• Northeast: Illinois Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New Jersey had their warmest April on record. I
• A total of 31 states experienced above-normal temperatures.
• February to April period: The record warmest in Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.
• January to April period: Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire had their warmest year-to-date on record. “Conversely, Florida had its coolest, while South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas’ average temperature ranked among their 10 coolest.”
• “The cooler-than-normal temperatures that prevailed during the latter part of the winter season in the south and southeast were still evident in the three-month (February-April) period. Florida had its coolest such period, while Louisiana and Alabama had their sixth coolest, Georgia its seventh coolest and both Mississippi and Texas their eighth coolest February-April.”

U.S. Precipitation Highlights

Source: NOAA. Click image to enlarge.

• Below average precipitation in most areas east of the Mississippi River.  West Coast was wet, and the Northwest higher than normal precipitation.
• “Many Mid-Atlantic states observed much-below-normal precipitation. Both Louisiana and South Carolina experienced their sixth driest April. It was also abnormally dry in Connecticut (eight), North Carolina (ninth), Virginia (ninth) and Maryland (tenth). Conversely, it was Oregon’s tenth-wettest April on record.”
• Michigan saw its second driest January to April period on record. “The year-to-date period was also the seventh driest for Wisconsin and Kentucky and the eighth driest for Louisiana.”

Other Highlights

• North American snow cover extent was the lowest on record for April since 1966. “It was also the largest negative anomaly, meaning distance below long term average, on record for any month.”
• “NCDC’s Climate Extremes Index (CEI) for January-April was about 6 percent higher than the historical average for that time period. The CEI measures the occurrence of several types of climate extremes (like record or near-record warmth, dry spells, or rainy periods). Factors contributing to this year’s value: a very large footprint (three times larger than average) of extreme wetness and twice the average area with warm minimum temperatures.”
• NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center reported 195 tornadoes in April. Subject to confirmation, “it would be the eighth highest number of April tornadoes.”
• “The most significant tornado of the month, which was rated EF-4 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, devastated areas near Yazoo City, Miss. According to a preliminary analysis by the National Weather Service, the tornado’s path was 149 miles long and stretched from extreme northeastern Louisiana to northeastern Mississippi. The damage path was up to 1¾ miles wide at points.” [More than a dozen people were killed by the tornado.]
• The U.S. Drought Monitor said 9 percent of the United States was affected by drought on April 27.

Related Links:

• Canceling Your Life Insurance Policy with Nature
• U.S. Weather

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