NCDC: Climate of 2004

NCDC / Climate Monitoring / Climate of 2004 / February / Global / Search / Help

Climate of 2004 - February in Historical Perspective

Including Boreal Winter
National Climatic Data Center
12 March 2004

Global Analysis / Global Hazards / United States / U.S. Drought / Extremes
Use these links to access detailed analyses of Global and U.S. data.

Global Highlights:

Based on preliminary data for December 2003 - February 2004, global average combined land and sea surface temperature was third warmest on record, and fourth warmest for February 2004

December - February temperatures were much above average throughout much of western and central Asia as well as parts of Canada with below average temperatures in northern Australia, Mexico and the eastern U.S.

Precipitation during December - February was above average across most of Europe, the Great Plains of the U.S. and northern Australia with drier than average conditions in Ireland, the eastern U.S. and Argentina

Near-normal SSTs across the central and eastern equatorial Pacific basin are indicative of neutral ENSO conditions.

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. This is a break in the document

Introduction

The two maps below use anomalies that were calculated from the Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN) data set of land surface stations using a 1961-1990 base period. Both maps indicate above average temperatures in the central U.S., most of Europe and Japan while cooler than average temperatures occurred in northern Australia and northern Argentina during winter and February 2004.

The mean position of upper level ridges of high pressure and troughs of low pressure (depicted by positive and negative 500 millibar height anomalies during February 2004 and December-February) are generally reflected by areas of positive and negative temperature anomalies at the surface, respectively. For all Global map products see the Climate Monitoring Global Products page.

Click here for current month's Temperature Dot map

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Click here for seasonal Temperature Dot map

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Temperature Rankings and Graphics

Current Month Seasonal Year-to-date

February	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
Global Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+1.08°C (+1.94°F) +0.43°C (+0.77°F) +0.62°C (+1.12°F)	5th warmest 2nd warmest 4th warmest	1998 (+0.1.61°C/2.90°F) 1998 (+0.53°C/0.95°F) 1998 (+0.85°C/1.53°F)
Northern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+1.19°C (+2.14°F) +0.44°C (+0.79°F) +0.74°C (+1.33°F)	7th warmest 2nd warmest 5th warmest	2002 (+2.01°C/3.62°F) 1998 (+0.55°C/1.00°F) 1998 (+1.10°C/1.98°F)
Southern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.38°C (+0.68°F) +0.47°C (+0.85°F) +0.45°C (+0.81°F)	15th warmest 5th warmest 4th warmest	1983 (+0.90°C/1.62°F) 1998 (+0.56°C/1.01°F) 1983 (+0.61°C/1.10°F)

Click here for Global Land and Ocean Triad plot

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Click here for Global Hemisphere Triad plot

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December-February	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
Global Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.89°C (+1.60°F) +0.44°C (+0.79°F) +0.57°C (+1.03°F)	5th warmest 2nd warmest 3rd warmest	2002 (+1.08°C/1.94°F) 1998 (+0.56°C/1.01°F) 1998 (+0.71°C/1.28°F)
Northern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.98°C (+1.77°F) +0.48°C (+0.86°F) +0.68°C (+1.22°F)	5th warmest 2nd warmest 3rd warmest	2002 (+1.34°C/2.41°F) 1998 (+0.56°C/1.01°F) 1998 (+0.79°C/1.42°F)
Southern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.53°C (+0.95°F) +0.43°C (+0.77°F) +0.45°C (+0.81°F)	7th warmest 7th warmest 5th warmest	1983 (+0.74°C/1.33°F) 1998 (+0.57°C/1.03°F) 1998 (+0.60°C/1.08°F)

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January-February	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
Global Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.92°C (+1.66°F) +0.43°C (+0.77°F) +0.58°C (+1.04°F)	5th warmest 2nd warmest 3rd warmest	2002 (+1.47°C/2.65°F) 1998 (+0.53°C/0.95°F) 1998 (+0.75°C/1.35°F)
Northern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+1.00°C (+1.80°F) +0.47°C (+0.85°F) +0.68°C (+1.22°F)	5th warmest 2nd warmest 5th warmest	2002 (+1.91°C/3.44°F) 1998 (+0.55°C/1.00°F) 2002 (+0.97°C/1.75°F)
Southern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.53°C (+0.95°F) +0.44°C (+0.79°F) +0.46°C (+0.83°F)	6th warmest 6th warmest 5th warmest	1983 (+0.76°C/1.37°F) 1998 (+0.55°C/1.00°F) 1998 (+0.58°C/1.04°F)

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The most current data may be accessed via the Global Surface Temperature Anomalies page.

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Precipitation

The maps below represent anomaly values based on the GHCN data set of land surface stations using a base period of 1961-1990. The map to the left is precipitation anomalies measured in millimeters, the map to the right is the percentage of average (1961-1990) precipitation. During December - February 2004, much above average precipitation fell across the Mississippi Valley in the U.S., eastern Europe and Indonesia. Below average precipitation was observed in Iberian Peninsula, Ireland and India.

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Click here for Percent Precipitation Dot map

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ENSO SST Analysis

Click Here for the last week of the month's ENSO condtions Map

Click here for animated loop

Sea surface temperatures were near-normal over much of the central and eastern equatorial Pacific (as shown in the adjacent animation of weekly sea surface temperature anomalies). A consensus of indices suggest neutral ENSO conditions. A comprehensive summary of February 2004 ENSO conditions can be found on the ENSO monitoring page. For the latest advisory on ENSO conditions go to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center (CPC) and the CPC ENSO Diagnostic Discussion

Images of sea surface temperature conditions are available for all months to date during 2004 at the weekly SST page

Troposphere

Current Month Seasonal

The tables below contain mid-tropospheric conditions for February 2004 and December - February. These temperatures are for the atmospheric layer centered in the mid-troposphere (approximately 2-6 miles above the Earth's surface) but 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.) Analysis of the satellite record that began in 1979 indicates that global temperatures are increasing in the mid-troposphere, but the magnitude of the trend differs based on the analysis methods used in adjusting for factors such as orbital decay and inter-satellite differences. The 1979-2004 trend for December-February is 0.03°C/decade based on data from the University of Alabama at Huntsville (UAH) and 0.13°C/decade on data provided by Remote Sensing Systems (RSS). The base period used in both data sets is 1979-1998.

February	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
UAH mid-troposphere	+0.17°C (+0.31°F)	6th warmest	1998 (+0.65°C/1.17°F)
RSS mid-troposphere	+0.30°C (+0.54°F)	4th warmest	1998 (+0.70°C/1.26°F)

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December-February	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
UAH mid-troposphere	+0.20°C (+0.36°F)	4th warmest	1998 (+0.44°C/0.79°F)
RSS mid-troposphere	+0.32°C (+0.58°F)	3rd warmest	1998 (+0.48°C/0.86°F)

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Stratosphere

Current Month Seasonal

The tables below display stratospheric conditions for February 2004 and December - February. The stratosphere is located between 10-14 miles above the Earth's surface. Over the past two decades, stratospheric temperatures have been decreasing 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 is a result of the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in the Philippines. The base period used in both data sets is 1979-1990.

February	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
UAH stratosphere	-0.68°C (-1.22°F)	26th coolest	1983 (+1.17°C/2.10°F)
RSS stratosphere	-0.68°C (-1.22°F)	25th coolest	1983 (+1.10°C/1.98°F)

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December-February	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
UAH stratosphere	-0.63°C (-1.13°F)	22nd coolest	1983 (+1.20°C/2.16°F)
RSS stratosphere	-0.64°C (-1.15°F)	23rd coolest	1983 (+1.10°C/1.98°F)

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Mid-tropospheric and lower stratospheric temperature data are collected by NOAA's TIROS-N polar-orbiting satellites and adjusted for time-dependent biases by NASA and 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).

For additional details on precipitation and temperatures in February, see the Global Hazards page .

References:

Peterson, T.C. and R.S. Vose, 1997: An Overview of the Global Historical Climatology Network Database. Bull. Amer. Meteorol. Soc., 78, 2837-2849.

For all climate questions other than questions concerning this report, please contact the National Climatic Data Center's Climate Services Division:

Climate Services Division
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue, Room 120
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4876
phone: 828-271-4800
email: ncdc.orders@noaa.gov

For questions about this report, please contact:

David Easterling
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4328
email: David.Easterling@noaa.gov

-or-

Jay Lawrimore
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
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Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4328
email: Jay.Lawrimore@noaa.gov

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NCDC / Climate Monitoring / Climate of 2004 / February / Global / Search / Help

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Climate of 2004 - February in Historical Perspective

National Climatic Data Center 12 March 2004

Global Highlights:

Contents of this Section:

Introduction

Temperature Rankings and Graphics

Precipitation

ENSO SST Analysis

Troposphere

Stratosphere

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National Climatic Data Center
12 March 2004