2008: Ninth warmest year on record
The temperature statistics are in, and the year 2008 ranks as the ninth warmest year for the globe on record, making it the coolest year since 2000, according to an analysis compiled by NASA. NOAA's National Climatic Data Center rated 2008 the eighth warmest on record, and the British Climate Research Unit rated it tenth warmest. NASA noted that given the uncertainty in the measurements, a range of 7th to 10th warmest was reasonable. Global temperature records extend back to 1880. December 2008 was also the eighth warmest December for the globe on record.
The average global temperature the past five years (and the last ten years) is the highest on record. The top ten warmest years since 1880 have all occurred in the past twelve years. So, despite the impressive cold blast in the Eastern U.S. this winter, the global climate is warming. The relatively cool temperatures of 2008 probably represent a normal year-to-year fluctuation in the weather. Cool weather is to be expected globally during a strong La Niña event in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, which was present during the first part of 2008 (see the cool blue colors over the Equatorial Pacific in Figure 1). It is no surprise that the last year it was cooler, 2000, was also the last time we had a La Niña event. With La Niña conditions beginning to develop again this year, I'd be surprised if 2009 turns out to be a record warm year. Dr. James Hansen of NASA is predicting a new global record temperature either this year or in 2010, though.
Figure 1. Global temperature anomalies in 2008 compared to the 1950-1980 baseline period. Below-average temperatures are shown in blue, average temperatures are white, and above-average temperatures are red. (Gray indicates no data.) Most of the world was either near normal or warmer than normal. Eastern Europe, Russia, the Arctic, and the Antarctic Peninsula were exceptionally warm (1.5 to 3.5 degrees Celsius above average). The temperature in the United States in 2008 was not much different than the 1951-1980 mean, which makes 2008 cooler than all of the previous years this decade. Large areas of the central and eastern Pacific Ocean were cooler than the long-term average, linked to a La Niña episode that began in 2007. The graph shows the long-term trend in surface temperatures since 1880. The annual average temperatures are shown in light orange, and the jaggedness of the line indicates how much the average global surface temperature varies from year to year. Because climate is so variable from year to year, it can be easier to spot long-term trends through multi-year averages. The dark red line shows the five-year running average, which is an average of five years of annual temperatures centered on a given year. Even this five-year average shows that climate has ups and downs, but the long-term increase in global average surface temperatures is obvious. The gray barbells indicate the range of uncertainty. Not surprisingly, the uncertainty is larger for older measurements than for more recent ones. Image credit: NASA.
A cool and snowy December in the U.S.
For the contiguous U.S., December was the 35th coolest December, ranking it in the coldest 30% of all Decembers observed since records began in 1895. December 2008 had near-average precipitation, ranking 43rd wettest. It was the 8th wettest December on record in the East North Central U.S., and 9th wettest for the Central U.S. Only the South experienced below average precipitation during the month. For the year 2008, temperatures in the U.S. were not much different than the 1951-1980 mean, which makes 2008 the coolest year since 1997. U.S. records set in December 2008 (courtesy of http://extremeweatherguide.com/updates.asp):
Spokane, WA: All-time 24-hour snowfall, 19.4", 12/17-12/18
Spokane, WA: All-time single storm snowfall: 23.3", 12/17-12/18
Sandpoint, ID: All-time 24-hour snowfall, 27.0"
Jackson, WY: All-time 24-hour snowfall, 27.0"
Fargo, ND: Snowiest month on record: 33.5"
Spokane, WA: Snowiest month on record: 61.5"
Green Bay, WI: Snowiest month on record: 45.6"
Madison, WI: Snowiest month on record: 40.4"
Wausau, WI: Snowiest month on record: 37.6"
Idaho: All-time 24-hour state snowfall record set at Dollar Hide, 46.5", 12/26-12/27 (not confirmed)
At the end of 2008, 20% of the contiguous United States was in moderate-to-exceptional drought. This is a decline from the 28% of the U.S. that was under similar drought conditions at the end of 2007. The average precipitation for the U.S. in 2008 was 30.48 inches, which is 1.34 inches above average. 2008 was the wettest year on record for New Hampshire and Missouri, second wettest for Massachusetts, and third wettest for Connecticut, Illinois, and Iowa. Also, 2008 was the fourth wettest year for Indiana, fifth wettest for Maine, Michigan, and Vermont, seventh wettest for New York, and eighth wettest for Kansas and Rhode Island.
Next post
Check out Ricky Rood's latest blog, called Cold in the East: A rant. There is a lot of misinformation circulating in the media right now about climate change, and Ricky and I will be doing our best to try to explain what is fact and what is crap in the coming weeks. I posted one such discussion last week, when I showed that the recent claims that sea ice is back to 1979 levels were a clever bit of cherry picking of the data that hides the critical summertime loss of Arctic sea ice. I'll have a new blog post on Friday.
Jeff Masters
Reader Comments
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Oh.. my second home while I was in the navy :)
Mel, why would San Diego be better, never been there so i don't know....sorry.
If you live in a largely republican area, the lack of interest can probably be attributed to that.
West Coast is a lot like Canada, much more liberal minded..
I can go on but don't want to piss anyone off. Republican yes...but the things I hear would curl your ears.
cross out Canada, write non-communist world...
Alaska/BC/Alberta/Washington/Oregon/California
They have a lot more similarity then say.. New York and California.. or Washington and the Carols.
Washington the State, not the City
Concur
where are you at Hurristat
Being from the north, and talking mostly to southerners, i have to um...monitor what i say to make sure i dont offend anyone, i tried to make it based more on party affiliation, which makes sense, than other factors (you know what I'm talking about) as not to offend anyone... i didnt want to stereotype. But with the South's history, it wouldn't be surprising to hear some select words...
I don't generalize about people, please know that. no offense to anyone.
Michigan.
Interesting place.. used to watch a fishing show from their all the time on cable... alwasy wanted to go there.. mind you.. people who go ice fishing appear to be playing with the low cards in the deck :)
With Rev. Lowery outlook i'm sure he would see the ice thicker for the white man than for any other color of person.........LOL
The "choice words" fly here - and we are seriously offended by them being from the north or being from anywhere really but here. It's like this place is stuck in a time that won't move on. My daughter, who is blonde, blue eyed...we moved here and she fell in love with another kid from the school...I knew all about nicki - and was fine with whatever went on - innocent enough - they are kids. He is type 1, she is type 1 - they met in the nurse' office. Awwwwwww....
when I told someone about it - they felt the need to inform me that nicki was black. Half black anyway and that didn't i know. I was like "and your point IS?" This election here was kind of quieted and I won't even begin to say what the kids have been saying on the bus. there was a joke going around that would offend all of you - and i guarantee that you would all gasp. The principal here at least had the sense to tell the kids they would be expelled if he heard them repeat it.
When I moved here, I never thought it would be like this - I thought people had moved past this but apparently not. What I hope most is that Obama does REALLY WELL, kicks ass, takes names and shuts these people up...
Timmy my boy... sometimes you just worry me :)
LOL... the lakes get annoying when you're trying to drive somewhere. you have to drive around several lakes to go 10 miles instead of taking a straight line like you do in North Dakota... and go to the Upper Peninsula before the lower if you do go; Stephen Colbert ruled it part of Canada : )
You guys are technically part of the area they call the land of a thousand lakes aren't you?
replay what he said....and listen.....White, black, yellow, red......im not a racist person at all....to your thinking but, obvious many are in denial and not open about this world.
have fun.. play nice..
Yep little BOYS like me should be in bed as labled......LMAO
I have to confess... i have been to the deep south maybe but twice, but I know some people who say very similar things about the same topics. I try not to stereotype, but based on the history of the south (as interpreted by the north), i inferred what many people would say about such touchy topics. It has only been 43-44 years since Former President Johnson signed the bill, and parents have a huge influence on their children... but if my interpretation is wrong, go ahead and call me on it.
I didn't call you racist.. I just said to open your mind and listen to all of the lines.. to all of the remarks about each colour.. I am sure each one can be taken in a positive and or negative context, depending how your willing to look at them.
I looked at all of them in a positive context.. I could care less what colour anyone is. Its personality that counts for me.
that's Minnesota's nickname...but kind of... but in Michigan you're never more than 6 miles from water.
I watched it live at school... anyway, did anyone see the size of Biden's bible? It looked like it weighed a ton... poor Mrs. Biden.
That was a family Bible that had been in the family from i think 1880's something.....that was very cool actually..
Its about 43deg. here at my house. I live in NW Tampa.
that is cool, but still...
I think Obama swearing in on Lincoln's bible is even more cool however.
What's interesting is that the clause "so help me god" was added to the end of the inaugural address and the the founding fathers were not very religious, Thomas Jefferson was a deist, etc... not trying to get an argument going, just remarking on the subject.
If it weren't for Orca, Keeper, NEwx, and Bonedog, I'd probably go crazy telling you Floridians that you guys have absolutely no idea.
Hello there fellow Michigander! I'm from the Cedar Springs area. I'll be moving to FL
47 being the highest temperature recorded for snow, definitely possible
I live in Florida but, im not a Floridian. I am from the North........LOL
HEY!!! OMG SOMEONE ELSE FROM MICHIGAN!!! I'm kinda in between Brighton and Novi, 15 min from Dr. Masters
I got the lights on outside...im watching....LOL
you're half off the hook...
LOL yea!
I know where that is, I've been over there. Went to Ann Arbor in 2004 to see Michigan take on Indiana. GO BLUE!
when they were good...
Was the Blue ever good.....I'm from Indiana.....LOL ....what a miserable Football school.....LOL.......i'm talking about Indiana of course....LMAO
I agree with you Orca - I don't care what color you are. I am way more interested in if you are a decent guy/gal and help folks. I tell my girls I'm going to ask for a TRW before they go out on a date just to make sure the guys aren't racking up huge bills and not paying on them...lol (j/k - in these times it would be a norm actually).
Man, the OLD Wolverines were good now it's like.. dare I say it, no.. I can;t.. we already have the Lions *aaack*
Oh no you didn't just type that LOL
I gotta move the oldest from the upper level - to downstairs - I realize it's a teen thing to have the floor by yourself but DANG...enough already. We could shut the second and third story a/c & heat to a min and just take care of the downstairs.
Sweet dreams to all - I'm sure that my feet are feeling better than Michelle Obamas right now...and I'm sure that my night has been more quiet than their nanny that is watching their girls (they are all watching high school musical 3...i would rather gouge my own eyeballs out with a butterknife...)
THANK YOU!!! THAT FIRST STATEMENT IS WHAT PEOPLE SHOULD LIVE BY!!! (sorry for the overzealous caps)
Mel my house has kids of every color in and out of my house...sorry to offend you and other Democrats upon what i thought was improper things said and this historic event.....that my only point...look at the video replay above and many might have different views.......i just thought is was over the top for the event that we as witnessing.....WOW!
no its more like *saaacked* with the lions but MSU has kinda replaced U of M... and for you Indiana folk... has Indiana ever won a national championship... that's what i thought... and we have 7... chew on that one
aaahhh...Floridians...trade your butterknife for a spoon...
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