Climate Monitoring / Climate of 2002 / December / Global / Help

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Climate of 2002 December in Historical Perspective National Climatic Data Center 14 January 2003

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: Global average combined land and sea surface temperature was the fifth warmest for December 2002 Temperatures were much above average throughout most of North America, with below average temperatures across much of Asia Precipitation during December was above average across the southeast U.S., southern Europe and eastern China, with drier than average conditions over Scandinavia, Indonesia and the eastern half of Australia

Contents of this Section: Introduction Global Temperatures Global Precipitation Microwave Sounding Unit Data

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.

Introduction

The December 2002 mean temperature was above the 1988-2002 average across much of North America, northwestern Africa, southwestern Europe, India and southeast Asia as shown in the adjacent map of blended satellite and in situ data. Cooler than average temperatures were noted over a large area of Asia including most of Russia and eastern Europe, as well as much of Argentina. The mean position of upper level ridges and troughs of low pressure depicted by positive and negative 500 millibar height anomalies), are generally reflected by areas of positive and negative temperature anomalies at the surface, respectively. Warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures were observed throughout the tropical Pacific, the signature of El Niño conditions.

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December temperature anomalies calculated from the Global Historical Climatology Network data set of land surface stations using a 1961-1990 base period show above average temperatures throughout Canada, Alaska and much of the northern United States, where monthly temperatures were 4-6°C (7.2-10.8°F) above the mean. Notable cool anomalies were present throughout much of Asia, where monthly temperatures were up to 4-6°C (7.2-10.8°F) below average.

Temperature

December For December 2002, the global average land and ocean surface temperature was 0.42°C (0.76°F) above the 1880-2001 average, ranking as the fifth warmest December in the period of record The warmest December occurred in 1997, with an anomaly of +0.60°C (+1.08°F) Globally averaged ocean temperatures were third warmest on record, or 0.46°C (0.83°F) above the long-term mean

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Serial monthly global surface temperature departures with respect to a 1971-2000 mean are shown in the figure to the right The recent return to record or near record temperature departures is evident, and globally averaged surface temperatures (land and ocean) have been warmer than the 1971-2000 average for the last 80 consecutive months

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Precipitation

During December 2002, much above average precipitation fell across the U.S. West Coast and Southeast, southern Europe and the Mediterranean region, as well as eastern China, Korea and southern Japan Below average precipitation was observed across central Europe into Scandinavia, much of Indonesia and the eastern half of Australia Additional regional analysis can be found on the Global Hazards page

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Microwave Sounding Unit Data

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Temperatures in the lowest 8km (5 miles) of the troposphere were 0.18°C (0.32°F) above average during December 2002, the sixth warmest December in the satellite period of record (1979 to present) Temperatures in the Southern Hemisphere were second warmest on record for December, 0.34°C (0.61°F) above the mean

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December 2002 temperatures were below average in the lower stratosphere, or 0.33°C (0.59°F) cooler than the mean This was the tenth consecutive December with below average temperatures in the lower stratosphere

  For additional details on precipitation and temperatures in December, 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:

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For questions about this report, please contact:

David Easterling
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
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fax: 828-271-4328
email: David.Easterling@noaa.gov

Jay Lawrimore
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
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fax: 828-271-4328
email: Jay.Lawrimore@noaa.gov

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