July 2015 Global Temperature Average Hits New Record

Land and ocean temperature percentiles July 2015. (Credit: NOAA)

In keeping with global warming trends, scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration note in a recent press release that July 2015 will go down in history as the hottest ever recorded with a global average of 61.86 degrees Fahrenheit. This average beats the previous record set in 1998 by 0.14 degrees and is the hottest since record keeping began in 1880.

The record-setting temperature average was largely driven by unprecedented global sea surface temperatures, which were 1.35 degrees Fahrenheit higher than the 20th century average. The Pacific and Indian Oceans in particular experienced record-setting warmth.

While land surface temperatures were in the top six for warmth, they were not the warmest ever on record for July, indicating that ocean temperatures may have been a greater factor than land temperatures in achieving the global record average. But year-to-date records were set for global average land surface temperatures.

Top image: Land and ocean temperature percentiles July 2015. (Credit: NOAA)