WASHINGTON -- The global land surface temperature was the warmest on record for March, 1.83 degrees Celsius above the 20th century mean of 4.89 degrees, according to a new report released Thursday by US federal agency.
Global ocean surface temperatures were the 13th warmest in March, as the cooling influence of La Nina in the tropical Pacific continued, said the analysis report by US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Combining the land and the ocean temperatures, the overall global temperature ranked the second warmest for the month of March, 0.71 degrees above the 20th century mean of 12.72 degrees. Global temperature averages have been recorded since 1880, and the warmest March on record occurred in 2002.
In March, temperatures more than 4 degrees above average covered much of the Asian continent. Two months after the greatest January snow cover extent on record on the Eurasian continent, the unusually warm temperatures in March led to rapid snow melt, and March snow cover extent on the Eurasian continent was the lowest on record.
The average temperature for March in the contiguous United States ranked near average for the past 113 years. It was the 63rdwarmest March since record-keeping began in the United States in 1895.
