Driving the news: This morning Europe’s Copernicus Climate Change Service announced the milestone, making a recent preliminary finding official.
Why it matters: Copernicus is among the most closely-watched and respected sources of temperature data, and reports before the U.S.’ climate agencies, NOAA and NASA.
- March marks just the latest in a string of troubling developments on the climate front.
- 2023 was the warmest year on record, and global conditions — including record warm oceans — are worrying scientists.
- Unusually warm waters in the tropical Atlantic led to the issuance this month of an extremely bullish forecast for the upcoming hurricane season.
State of play: Last month was 0.73°C (1.3°F) above the 1991-2020 average for March, and 1.68°C (3.0°F) above estimated preindustrial levels, which are calculated for the period from 1850-1900, Copernicus found.
Between the lines: Two other key records were also set during March: the hottest 12-month period, and the milestone for the hottest global average sea surface temperatures, Copernicus showed.