NOAA: January 2014 fourth-warmest on record
Friday, February 21, 2014, 2:19 PM -
It may be hard to believe considering the winter storms we've seen, but January's global temperature was the fourth warmest in nearly 150 years, according to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Association (NOAA).
Here's more from the agency:
"The combined global land and ocean average temperature during January 2014 was 0.65°C (1.17°F) above the 20th century average. This was the warmest January since 2007 and the fourth highest since records began in 1880 ... The Northern Hemisphere land and ocean surface temperature during January 2014 was also the warmest since 2007 and the fourth warmest since records began in 1880 at 0.75°C (1.35°F) above average."
RELATED: Has it really been that cold in southern Ontario?
The news will likely come as a surprise to many people in Canada and the U.S.
While temperatures have fallen below seasonal levels in eastern portions of the states, NOAA says it hasn't been cold enough to break any records.
Meanwhile, parts of Canada are in the midst of one of the coldest winters on record.
"We haven’t seen a winter this cold in 20 years [in southern Ontario] and it's been colder than the winters of 1978 and 1979, which were famous for the chill," writes Weather Network meteorologist Patrick Cool.
