|
Climate of 2006 - March in Historical PerspectiveNational Climatic Data Center 13 April 2006 |
Global Highlights:
|
Contents of this Section: |
The data presented in this report are preliminary. Ranks and anomalies may change as more complete data are received and processed. The most current data may be accessed via the Global Surface Temperature Anomalies page. |
IntroductionTemperature anomalies for March 2006 are shown on the two maps below. The dot map on the left provides a spatial representation of anomalies calculated from the Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN) data set of land surface stations using a 1961-1990 base period. The map on the right is a product of a merged land surface and sea surface temperature anomaly analysis which is based on data from the GHCN of land temperatures and the Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set (COADS) of Sea-Surface Temperature (SST) data. Temperature anomalies with respect to 1961-1990 for land and ocean are analyzed separately and then merged to form the global analysis. Additional information on this product is available. |
During March 2006, there were above average temperatures in the U.S. Great Plains, Mexico, Algeria, Peru, Greenland and much of Asia. Cooler than average temperatures were observed in Europe, Alaska, South Africa and the western coast of British Columbia. During January-March 2006, there were above average temperatures in the majority of North America, central Africa, much of Asia and Greenland. Cooler than average temperatures were observed in eastern Europe, Alaska and Russia. In January-March and March 2006, warmer than average SSTs occurred in the South Pacific and the North Atlantic. Cooler than average conditions were observed in the Niño 3.4 region, indicative of the La Niña episode that developed by mid-January, and also off the coast of western Australia. Please see the latest ENSO discussion for further information. |
larger image |
larger image |
The mean position of upper level ridges of high pressure and troughs of low pressure (depicted by positive and negative 500 millibar height anomalies on the March 2006 map) are generally reflected by areas of positive and negative temperature anomalies at the surface, respectively. For other Global products see the Climate Monitoring Global Products page. |
Images of sea surface temperature conditions are available for all weeks during 2006 at the weekly SST page. |
Temperature Rankings and Graphics |
Effective with the January 2006 report, NCDC transitioned from the use of the Operational Global Surface Temperature Index (Quayle et al. 1999) to the blended land and ocean dataset developed by Smith and Reynolds (2005). The differences between the two methods are discussed in Smith et al. 2005. |
Current Month / Year-to-date |
March | Anomaly | Rank | Warmest Year on Record |
---|---|---|---|
GlobalLandOcean Land and Ocean |
+1.02°C (+1.84°F) +0.38°C (+0.68°F) +0.55°C (+0.99°F) |
7th warmest 7th warmest 7th warmest |
1990 (+1.45°C/2.61°F) 1998 (+0.51°C/0.92°F) 2002 (+0.73°C/1.31°F) |
Northern HemisphereLandOcean Land and Ocean |
+1.21°C (+2.18°F) +0.33°C (+0.59°F) +0.66°C (+1.19°F) |
8th warmest 6th warmest 6th warmest |
1990 (+1.99°C/3.58°F) 2004 (+0.49°C/0.88°F) 1990 (+0.90°C/1.62°F) |
Southern HemisphereLandOcean Land and Ocean |
+0.45°C (+0.81°F) +0.43°C (+0.77°F) +0.44°C (+0.79°F) |
13th warmest 7th warmest 9th warmest |
1988 (+1.60°C/2.88°F) 1998 (+0.55°C/0.99°F) 1988 (+0.63°C/1.13°F) |
larger image |
larger image |
January-March | Anomaly | Rank | Warmest Year on Record |
---|---|---|---|
GlobalLandOcean Land and Ocean |
+0.75°C (+1.35°F) +0.38°C (+0.68°F) +0.48°C (+0.86°F) |
11th warmest 6th warmest 7th warmest |
2002 (+1.50°C/2.70°F) 1998 (+0.53°C/0.95°F) 2002 (+0.72°C/1.30°F) |
Northern HemisphereLandOcean Land and Ocean |
+0.80°C (+1.44°F) +0.32°C (+0.58°F) +0.50°C (+0.90°F) |
12th warmest 6th warmest 10th warmest |
2002 (+1.88°C/3.38°F) 1998 (+0.50°C/0.90°F) 2002 (+0.95°C/1.71°F) |
Southern HemisphereLandOcean Land and Ocean |
+0.60°C (+1.08°F) +0.44°C (+0.79°F) +0.46°C (+0.83°F) |
5th warmest 7th warmest 7th warmest |
1998 (+0.86°C/1.55°F) 1998 (+0.56°C/1.01°F) 1998 (+0.60°C/1.08°F) |
larger image |
larger image |
PrecipitationThe maps below represent anomaly values based on the GHCN data set of land surface stations using a base period of 1961-1990. During March 2006, above average precipitation fell over areas that include the U.S. southern Plains, Brazil, India, far eastern Europe, southeast Asia and parts of the U.S. Ohio Valley. Below average precipitation was observed in Iceland, South Africa, the western coast of Canada and the U.S. East Coast. |
larger image |
larger image |
ENSO SST AnalysisClick here for animated loop |
|
Northern Hemisphere Sea Ice Extent |
Northern Hemisphere sea ice extent, as measured from passive microwave instruments onboard NOAA satellites, was the lowest for any March on record in 2006 at 14.5 million square kilometers (image to the right). The previous March record was set in 2005 with 14.8 million square kilometers. This is 1.2 million square kilometers below the long-term (1979-2000) mean. For further information on Northern Hemisphere snow and ice cover during March, please see the Northern Hemisphere Snow and Ice page and the press release issued on April 5th by the NOAA's National Snow and Ice Data Center. | Larger image |
TroposphereCurrent MonthMid-tropospheric and lower stratospheric temperature data are collected by NOAA's TIROS-N polar-orbiting satellites and adjusted for time-dependent biases by the Global Hydrology and Climate Center at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH). An independent analysis is also performed by Remote Sensing Systems (RSS) and a third analysis has been performed by Dr. Qiang Fu of the the University of Washington (UW) (Fu et al. 2004)**. The table below summarizes mid-tropospheric conditions for March 2006. These temperatures are for the atmospheric layer centered in the mid-troposphere (approximately 2-6 miles above the Earth's surface) which also includes a portion of the lower stratosphere. (The MSU channel used to measure mid-tropospheric temperatures receives about 25 percent of its signal above 6 miles). For additional information on MSU data used in this report, please see the Microwave Sounding Unit page. All datasets indicate boreal winter temperatures and March temperatures were above average. Records began in 1979. |
March | Anomaly | Rank | Warmest Year on Record | Trend |
---|---|---|---|---|
UAH mid-trop | +0.10°C/0.18°F | 10th warmest | 1998 (+0.49°C/0.88°F) | +0.04°C/decade |
*RSS mid-trop | +0.20°C/0.36°F | 8th warmest | 1998 (+0.54°C/0.97°F) | +0.12°C/decade |
**UW-UAH mid-trop | +0.23°C/0.41°F | 6th warmest | 1998 (+0.61°C/1.10°F) | +0.10°C/decade |
**UW-*RSS mid-trop | +0.34°C/0.61°F | 5th warmest | 1998 (+0.65°C/1.17°F) | +0.18°C/decade |
*Version 02_1 |
StratosphereCurrent MonthThe table below summarizes stratospheric conditions for March 2006. On average, the stratosphere is located approximately between 10-14 miles above the Earth's surface. Over the last decade, stratospheric temperatures have been below average in large part due to the depletion of ozone. The large increase in temperature in 1982 was caused by the volcanic eruption of El Chichon in Mexico, and the increase in 1991 was a result of the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in the Philippines. Therefore the base period used is 1984-1990 which was chosen to avoid contamination by these eruptions. |
March | Anomaly | Rank | Coolest Year on Record |
---|---|---|---|
UAH stratosphere | -0.66°C (-1.19°F) | 2nd coolest | 1999 (-0.73°C/-1.31°F) |
*RSS stratosphere | -0.78°C (-1.40°F) | coolest | 2nd - 1999 (-0.74°C/-1.33°F) |
*Version 02_1 |
For additional details on precipitation and temperatures in March, see the Global Hazards page. |
ReferencesChristy, John R., R.W. Spencer, and W.D. Braswell, 2000: MSU Tropospheric Temperatures: Dataset Construction and Radiosonde Comparisons. J. of Atmos. and Oceanic Technology 17 1153-1170.Fu, Q., C.M. Johanson, S.G. Warren, and D.J. Seidel, 2004: Contribution of stratospheric cooling to satellite-inferred tropospheric temperature trends. Nature, 429, 55-58. Mears, Carl A., M.C. Schabel, F.J. Wentz, 2003: A Reanalysis of the MSU Channel 2 Tropospheric Temperature Record. J. Clim 16, 3650-3664. Peterson, T.C. and R.S. Vose, 1997: An Overview of the Global Historical Climatology Network Database. Bull. Amer. Meteorol. Soc., 78, 2837-2849. Quayle, R. G., T. C. Peterson, A. N. Basist, and C. S. Godfrey, 1999: An operational near-real-time global temperature index. Geophys. Res. Lett., 26, 333-335. Smith, T. M., and R. W. Reynolds (2005), A global merged land air and sea surface temperature reconstruction based on historical observations (1880-1997), J. Clim., 18, 2021-2036. |
For all climate questions other than questions concerning this report, please contact the National Climatic Data Center's Climate Services Division:
|
Top of Page |
|
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/2006/mar/global.html
Downloaded Thursday, 25-Sep-2008 18:30:32 EDT Last Updated Wednesday, 28-Jun-2006 15:42:30 EDT by Candace.Tankersley@noaa.gov Please see the NCDC Contact Page if you have questions or comments. |