Introduction

The September-November 2002 mean temperature was above the 1988-2002 average across western Canada and Alaska, the eastern Mediterranean to western China, and Australia and Paraguay as shown in the adjacent map of blended satellite and in situ data. Cooler than average temperatures were noted over parts of the United States, northern Europe and the southern tip of Argentina and Chile. 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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November temperature anomalies calculated from the Global Historical Climatology Network data set of land surface stations using a 1961-1990 base period show below average temperatures in the eastern half of the U.S., most of northern Europe and the Far East. Notable warm anomalies were present over Alaska and western Canada, southern Europe and the Mediterranean region, and eastern Siberia.

Temperature

November For November 2002, the global average land and ocean surface temperature was 0.57°C (1.03°F) above the 1880-2001 average, ranking as the third warmest November in the period of record The warmest November occurred in 2001, with an anomaly of +0.67°C (+1.21°F)

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September-November For September-November 2002, the global average land and ocean surface temperature was 0.50°C (0.9°F) above the long term mean, or fourth warmest for boreal fall Ocean surface temperatures were 0.44°C (0.79°F) above the 1880-2001 mean, or fourth warmest for September-November.

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January-November The global land and ocean surface temperature average (January-November 2002) was the second warmest such 11-month period in the 1880-2002 record, 0.57°C (1.03°F) above the long-term mean and 0.07°C (0.13°F) cooler than during the El Niño year of 1998 January-November 2002 average temperature across land and ocean areas also ranked as second warmest on record, or 0.93°C (1.67°F) and 0.41°C (0.74°F) above the 1880-2001 average, respectively.

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Precipitation

During September-November 2002, much above average precipitation fell along the U.S Eastern Seaboard and Gulf coast, as well as the southern half of Europe Below average precipitation was observed across eastern Australia, much of the western U.S. and Pacific coast of North America, and Scandinavia During the month of November, unusually wet weather occurred in southwestern Europe, while the western two-thirds of the U.S. and eastern Australia experienced drier than average conditions 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 0.19°C (0.34°F) above average during September-November 2002, the second warmest boreal fall in the satellite period of record (1979 to present) Temperatures in the Southern Hemisphere were warmest on record for September-November, 0.33°C (0.59°F) above the mean Meanwhile, temperatures for November were second warmest on record in the lower troposphere, or 0.23°C (0.41°F) above average

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September-November 2002 temperatures were below average in the lower stratosphere, or 0.40°C (0.72°F) cooler than the mean Stratospheric temperatures in November were also below average globally, with a departure of 0.43°C (0.77°F)

  For additional details on precipitation and temperatures in November, 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.

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For questions about this report, please contact:

David Easterling
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email: David.Easterling@noaa.gov

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fax: 828-271-4328
email: Jay.Lawrimore@noaa.gov

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