5/6/2023 0 Comments 2016 precipitation totals![]() ![]() Overall, annual record warm and much warmer-than-average temperatures were observed in parts of every major ocean basin. The indices were among their lowest levels on record in July and September, as reported by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). In addition to the strong El Niño, a strong negative phase of the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) developed in the Southern Hemisphere winter and spring, influencing temperatures in that region. Even so, global ocean temperatures remained high, with the December temperature elevated at 0.61☌ (1.10☏) above the 20 th century average, an anomaly not achieved in the record until June 2009. This was a continuation of a high temperature threshold first crossed in September 2015.The El Niño dissipated in spring and was replaced by weak La Niña conditions near the end of the year. January, February, and March each observed a monthly temperature at least 0.8☌ (1.4☏) above average. A near-record strong El Niño in the Pacific Ocean at the beginning of the year led to some of the highest monthly global ocean temperatures on record, with January, February, March, April, June, July and August all ranking among the 12 warmest of all months in the 137-year record. The annually-averaged temperature for ocean surfaces around the world was 0.75☌ (1.35☏) higher than the 20 th century average, edging out the previous record of 2015 by 0.01☌ (0.02☏). Much of the record warmth for the globe can be attributed to record warmth in the global oceans. The following table lists the global combined land and ocean annually-averaged temperature rank and anomaly for each of the 12 warmest years on record (2003, 2006, and 2007 tie as 10 th warmest). Overall, the global annual temperature has increased at an average rate of 0.07☌ (0.13☏) per decade since 1880 and at an average rate of 0.17☌ (0.31☏) per decade since 1970. To date, all 16 years of the 21 st century rank among the seventeen warmest on record (1998 is currently the eighth warmest.) The five warmest years have all occurred since 2010. This marks the fifth time in the 21 st century a new record high annual temperature has been set (along with 2005, 2010, 2014, and 2015) and also marks the 40 th consecutive year (since 1977) that the annual temperature has been above the 20 th century average. The global temperatures in 2016 were majorly influenced by strong El Niño conditions that prevailed at the beginning of the year. The average global temperature across land and ocean surface areas for 2016 was 0.94☌ (1.69☏) above the 20 th century average of 13.9☌ (57.0☏), surpassing the previous record warmth of 2015 by 0.04☌ (0.07☏). Remarkably, this is the third consecutive year a new global annual temperature record has been set. With the contribution of eight consecutive high monthly temperature records set from January to August, and the remainder of the months ranking among their five warmest, 2016 became the warmest year in NOAA's 137-year series. 2016 Global Significant Weather and Climate Events Global Temperatures ![]()
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