Year-to-date global temperatures are warmest on record

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports that for the year-to-date, the global combined land and ocean surface temperature of 57.5°F was the warmest January-June period since recordkeeping began in 1880. June’s combined global land and ocean surface temperature of 61.1°F made it the warmest June on record.

Warmer-than-average conditions dominated the globe, with the most prominent warmth in Peru, the central and eastern contiguous U.S. and eastern and western Asia. Cooler-than-average regions included Scandinavia, southern China and the northwestern contiguous U.S.

NOAA National Climatic Center climate analysis chief Jay Lawrence told USA Today that the warmer temperatures are “part of an overall trend”. He said that global temperatures have been rising for more 100 years and that the increase is due to a higher level of greenhouse gases.