Global Temperature Report: March 2013

Global composite temp.: +0.18 C (about 0.32 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for March.

Northern Hemisphere: +0.33 C (about 0.59 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for March.

Southern Hemisphere: +0.04 C (about 0.07 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for March.

Tropics: +0.22 C (about 0.40 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for March.

February temperatures (revised):

Global Composite: +0.18 C above 30-year average

Northern Hemisphere: +0.37 C above 30-year average

Southern Hemisphere: -0.02 C below 30-year average

Tropics: +0.17 C above 30-year average

(All temperature anomalies are based on a 30-year average (1981-2010) for the month reported.)

Notes on data released April 1, 2013:

Two new climate ‘products’ will soon be available from the UAH temperature dataset, while a long standing product has been improved to make it more accurate, according to Dr. John Christy, a professor of atmospheric science and director of the Earth System Science Center at The University of Alabama in Huntsville. The “USA48” data, which tracks month-to-month temperature anomalies and the long-term climate trend over the contiguous 48 states, has been made more accurate by using a more precise tool for including the pieces of land adjacent to oceans.

The two new products are a USA49, which includes Alaska with the lower 48, and a listing for Australia, which includes Tasmania. Both of these new products will include temperature anomaly and trend data going back to the beginning of the UAH dataset in December 1978.

Compared to seasonal norms, during March the coldest area on the globe was in northeastern Russia, where the average temperature was as much as 6.49 C (about 11.7 degrees Fahrenheit) cooler than seasonal norms. Looking at the global anomaly map also shows the eastern U.S. and central Canada becoming much cooler than normal in March.

Compared to seasonal norms, the “warmest” area on the globe in March was middle of the Davis Strait, between Greenland and Baffin Island. Temperatures there averaged 6.49 C (about 11.7 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than seasonal norms for March.

Archived color maps of local temperature anomalies are available on-line at:
http://nsstc.uah.edu/climate/
The processed temperature data is available on-line at:
vortex.nsstc.uah.edu/data/msu/t2lt/uahncdc.lt
As part of an ongoing joint project between UAHuntsville, NOAA and NASA, John Christy, a professor of atmospheric science and director of the Earth System Science Center (ESSC) at The University of Alabama in Huntsville, and Dr. Roy Spencer, an ESSC principal scientist, use data gathered by advanced microwave sounding units on NOAA and NASA satellites to get accurate temperature readings for almost all regions of the Earth. This includes remote desert, ocean and rain forest areas where reliable climate data are not otherwise available.

The satellite-based instruments measure the temperature of the atmosphere from the surface up to an altitude of about eight kilometers above sea level. Once the monthly temperature data is collected and processed, it is placed in a “public” computer file for immediate access by atmospheric scientists in the U.S. and abroad.

Neither Christy nor Spencer receives any research support or funding from oil, coal or industrial companies or organizations, or from any private or special interest groups. All of their climate research funding comes from federal and state grants or contracts.

Dr. John Christy, (256) 961-7763
john.christy@nsstc.uah.edu
Dr. Roy Spencer, (256) 961-7960
roy.spencer@nsstc.uah.edu