Ocean temperatures last month were the warmest ever recorded, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The records date back to 1850. Meanwhile, North and South America recorded the hottest temperatures ever in May, while May was the third-warmest on record for the entire world. Temperatures in North America were driven by wildfires in Canada (pictured). Here’s the NOAA report:
It was another warm month for the globe, with May 2023 ranking as the world’s third-warmest May on record.
Earth’s ocean surface temperatures also set a record high for the second month in a row, according to scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information.
The average global May temperature was 1.75 degrees F (0.97 of a degree C) above the 20th-century average of 58.6 degrees F (14.8 degrees C), ranking as the third-warmest May in 174 years. May 2023 marked the 47th consecutive May and the 531st consecutive month with temperatures above the 20th-century average.
Looking at continents, both North America and South America had their warmest Mays on record, while Africa, Asia and Europe each had their top-20 warmest Mays. Antarctica had a cooler-than-average May.
For a second month in a row, global ocean surface temperatures set a record high. Weak El Nino conditions emerged as above-average sea surface temperatures strengthened across the equatorial Pacific Ocean, prompting NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center to announce the arrival of El Nino conditions.
The March–May period — defined as the Northern Hemisphere’s meteorological spring and the Southern Hemisphere’s meteorological autumn — was also remarkably warm. The Northern Hemisphere’s spring was the third warmest on record at 2.32 degrees F (1.29 degrees C) above average. The Southern Hemisphere’s autumn ranked second warmest on record at 1.49 degrees F (0.83 of a degree C) above average.
The year-to-date (January through May 2023) global surface temperature ranked as the fourth-warmest such period on record, 1.82 degrees F (1.01 degrees C) above the 1901-2000 average of 55.5 degrees F (13.1 degrees C).
According to NCEI’s Global Annual Temperature Rankings Outlook, there is a virtually certain chance (greater than 99.0%) that 2023 will rank among the 10-warmest years on record, and about an 89% chance it will rank among the top five.
Other notable climate events in the report
- Antarctic sea ice hit a record low for May: Globally, May 2023 saw the second-lowest sea ice extent (coverage) on record for the month. Only May 2019 had a smaller global sea ice extent. Last month’s Antarctic sea ice extent ranked lowest on record for May, at 750,000 square miles below average. This was 190,000 square miles below the previous Antarctic record low from May 2019. Arctic sea ice extent for May 2023 ranked 13th smallest in the satellite record, about 40,000 square miles below average. Read more:
https://www.noaa.gov/news/earth-saw-its-3rd-warmest-may-in-174-years
