Global temperatures were well above average in July, according to NOAA's monthly climate report.The planet's average temperature of 61.75 degrees was its fourth-warmest July since records began in 1880.Sea ice extent was also below average in both the Arctic and Antarctic.
July 2018 was the fourth-hottest July globallysince record-keeping began in 1880, according to a report released Monday morning by NOAA.
The monthly global climate analysis found July's worldwide average temperature ,1.35 degreeswarmer than the 20th-century average for the month of July. It was the 42nd consecutive July and 403rdmonth in a row with above-average global temperatures, NOAA also said.
"It's now increasingly likely that the five warmest years on record globally will be 2014 through 2018," said , weather and climate blogger for Weather Underground. "If an El Niño develops later this year, as predicted, that will give 2019 a very good chance of joining the pack. Barring a massive volcanic eruption, global temperature seems to be headed in one direction, and it isn't downward."
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Few areas globally have seen an average or below-average first seven months of 2018, in terms of temperatures.
(NOAA)
Through the first seven months of this year, the global average temperature is the fourth-warmest ever recorded and 1.39 degrees warmer than the average of 56.9 degrees, the report also found. While it's still warm enough for a top-four ranking, it's nearly half a degree cooler than the all-time warmest January-through-July period, set in 2016.
And although the planet didn't collectively set a record high, 69 stations worldwide reported the warmest July on record, NOAA also said.
When compared to continental records, which have been kept since 1910, the first seven months of 2018 have been among the six hottest on record for Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania, the report also said.
The report also found sea ice extent for both the Arctic and Antarctic was below-average for the month, the ninth-smallest and eighth-smallest, respectively, on record for July.