June marks 14th consecutive month of record heat: NOAA

The month of June marked the 14^th consecutive month of record heat and record high average sea surface temperature, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported on Tuesday.

Credit: NOAA.

June 2016 was 1.62 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th century average, breaking last year’s record for the warmest June on record by 0.04 degrees F, according to scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information. NOAA’s global temperature records dates back 137 years to 1880.

For the year to date, the average global temperature was 1.89 degrees F above the 20th century average. This was the highest temperature for this period, surpassing the previous record set in 2015 by 0.36 degrees F, NOAA said in a press release.

Related: Global temperature records piling up: NOAA

Other notable events included:

• June 2016 marks the 40^th consecutive June with temperatures at least nominally above the 20^th century average (June 1976 was the last time June global land and ocean temperatures were below average);
• The globally averaged sea surface temperature was record high for June and the year-to-date (January to June);
• The globally averaged land temperature tied as record high for June, making it the 34th consecutive June with temperatures above the 20th century average. The year-to-date (January–June) average temperature was also record high;
• Much warmer-than-average temperatures contributed to North America’s warmest June since continental records began in 1910;
• Much warmer-than-average conditions engulfed most of Africa resulting in the second warmest June since 1910 for the continent;
• The average Arctic sea ice extent for June was 11.4% below the 1981–2010 average. This was the smallest June extent since records began in 1979; and
• The average Antarctic sea ice extent for June was 40,000 square miles below the 1981–2010 average, marking the smallest June Antarctic sea ice extent since 2011 and the 13th smallest on record.