Earth Marks its Third Unofficial Heat Record This Week

The Earth reached a new, yet unofficial, average temperature high for the third time this week, solidifying it as the warmest week ever recorded.

On Thursday, the global average temperature climbed to 63 degrees Fahrenheit, or 17.23 degrees Celsius. This eclipsed the previous highs of 62.9 and 17.18-degree marks recorded on Tuesday and equaled on Wednesday. These readings were reported by the University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer, a tool that utilizes satellite data and computer simulations to gauge the planet’s condition.

Extreme temperatures were observed in several places around the world. Jingxing, China, recorded a searing 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 degrees Celsius), while Antarctica also experienced unusual warmth with temperatures up to 8 degrees Fahrenheit (4.5 degrees Celsius) above its normal range for the week.

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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) expressed caution regarding the findings from the Maine tool, stating that they couldn’t verify data partially derived from computer modeling.

While the NOAA was unable to validate the methods or conclusions of the University of Maine analysis, it acknowledged the warm period attributed to climate change, stating, “Although NOAA cannot validate the methodology or conclusion of the University of Maine analysis, we recognize that we are in a warm period due to climate change.”

Nevertheless, the Maine data is considered a significant warning sign of global climate change. Some climate scientists have expressed that they weren’t shocked to see these unofficial records being set.

Former chairman of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, scientist Robert Watson, criticized both governments and the private sector for their lack of commitment to addressing climate change, as well as citizens who demand cheap energy and food without acknowledging their real costs.

“Consumers demand cheap energy, cheap food and do not want to pay the true cost of food and energy,” Watson noted.

Reporting was conducted by Borenstein from Washington and O’Malley from Philadelphia.

The climate and environmental coverage from Big Big News is generously supported by several private foundations. You can learn more about the AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is fully responsible for all content.

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More about Unofficial Heat Record

• University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
• Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
• AP’s climate initiative
• Effects of climate change
• Climate change and global warming