The Heat, in Global Context

If you are feeling hot today, you certainly are not alone. Nearly every state in the U.S. is experiencing temperatures in the 90s or above. And the U.S. is not alone.  And we’re not just talking about the current heat wave. 

The June numbers have been crunched and, according to NOAA, the combined average temperature over global land and ocean surfaces last month made it the fifth hottest June on record, tied with 2006. 

Also, the combined global land and ocean average surface temperature for the January–June period (year-to-date) was 0.59°C (1.06°F) above the 20th century average of 13.5°C (56.3°F), tying 2013 with 2003 as the seventh warmest period on record.

If you remember back to 2003, a heat wave that summer killed an estimated 20,000 people in Italy and an estimated 15,000 in France. 

Photo Credit: NOAA Climate.gov team