2010 ranked as the warmest year on record, together with 2005 and 1998, reports the World Meteorological Organization. In 2010, global average temperature was 0.95°F above the 1961-90 mean. This value is 0.02°F above the nominal temperature in 2005, and 0.05°F above 1998.
“The 2010 data confirm the Earth’s significant long-term warming trend,” said WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud. “The 10 warmest years on record have all occurred since 1998.”
Over the 10 years from 2001 to 2010, global temperatures have averaged 0.83°F above the 1961-1990 average, and are the highest ever recorded for a 10-year period since the beginning of instrumental climate records. Recent warming has been especially strong in Africa, parts of Asia, and parts of the Arctic, with many subregions registering temperatures 2.2°F to 2.5°F above the long-term average.
2010 was an exceptionally warm year over much of Africa and southern and western Asia, and in Greenland and Arctic Canada, with many parts of these regions having their hottest years on record. Over land few parts of the world were significantly cooler than average in 2010, the most notable being parts of northern Europe and central and eastern Australia.
Heavy snowfalls in December 2010 severely disrupted transport in many parts of Europe. It was also colder than average in large parts of the Russian Federation and in the eastern United States, where snow also severely disrupted transport.