NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information
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Temperature
Preliminary mean monthly temperatures for January are shown in the above figure. The combined land and ocean temperature was 0.29C above the 1880-1999 long-term mean (0.18C warmer than the 1961-1990 base period). Although temperatures remained warmer than average for the 23rd year in a row, the combined land and ocean temperature was only the 16th warmest on record and was 0.38C less than the record anomaly recorded during the 1998 El-Nino episode. The land temperature anomaly based on the 1880-1999 long-term mean was only 0.32C which was 0.61C less than in 1999, while ocean temperatures were 0.28C above the long-term mean. larger image |
The adjacent map shows large areas of above-average temperatures (based on a 1961-1990 base period) in North America and Europe. A persistent ridge of high pressure over the Central US and Canada produced extremely warm temperatures in January, with anomalies as large as 7C in some areas. |
Temperatures from 2C to 4C above average were also common in a region stretching from Northern Europe into Central Eurasia. This contrasted sharply with a large area of below-average temperatures throughout southern Europe and the Mediteranean. Below-average anomalies are also evident in areas of central Russia, Mongolia, and northern areas of China, with temperatures more than 4C below average in many locations. Temperatures were also below average over much of Australia while near-normal to slightly warmer than average temperatures were recorded in South America. Time series for some of these regions can be viewed by clicking on the map below.
Precipitation
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January precipitation anomalies using a base period of 1961-1990 are shown on the adjacent map. The warmer-than-average temperatures observed across the central United States and Canada were accompanied by below-average precipitation. Negative anomalies greater than 100mm are evidence of extremely dry conditions along western coastal sections of Canada. |
Widespread dry conditions also prevailed across much of Europe and eastern areas of Australia. Precipitation was more than 100mm below normal along coastal sections north of Sydney, Australia. Slightly drier-than-normal conditions were experienced in central Russia and India.
| The most extensive
area of positive precipitation anomalies occurred in South America.
Rainfall averaged more than 100 millimeters above normal in parts
of Brazil. Many islands in the South Pacific also received much
above average rainfall. One of the wettest areas was Fiji, where
rainfall totals were more than 350mm above normal in January.
Above-average precipitation also fell in Scandinavia, parts of the
Middle East, eastern China, Alaska, and eastern areas of the
continental United States. Jerusalem, Israel received a record 15
inches of snowfall in January, and mid-Atlantic areas of the United
States endured a series of winter storms, including one storm that
left a single-storm record of 20 inches of snow in Raleigh, NC.
For additional details on precipitation and temperatures in January see the Global Regional 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.