Note: The data presented in this report are preliminary. Ranks and anomalies may change as more complete data are received and processed. Effective September 2012, the GHCN-M version 3.2.0 dataset of monthly mean temperature replaced the GHCN-M version 3.1.0 monthly mean temperature dataset. Beginning with the August 2012 Global monthly State of the Climate Report, released on September 17, 2012, GHCN-M version 3.2.0 is used for NCDC climate monitoring activities, including calculation of global land surface temperature anomalies and trends. For more information about this newest version, please see the GHCN-M version 3.2.0 Technical Report.
*The GHCN-M version 3.1.0 Technical Report was revised on September 5, 2012 to accurately reflect the changes incorporated in that version. Previously that report incorrectly included discussion of changes to the Pairwise Homogeneity Algorithm (PHA). Changes to the PHA are included in version 3.2.0 and described in the version 3.2.0 Technical Report. Please see the Frequently Asked Questions to learn more about this update.
Global Highlights:
- *Global average land and ocean
temperature was the warmest on record for January
- Lower tropospheric temperatures were above average during
January
- Temperatures in the lower stratosphere were cooler than
average
- During January, above average precipitation was most notable
across eastern Brazil and Scandinavia, with drier than average
conditions across southern Europe and much of Australia
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Contents of this Section:
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Introduction
| Using a 1992-2002 base
period as shown in the adjacent blended temperature
product of satellite and in-situ data, anomalously warm
temperatures during January in the Northern Hemisphere occurred
where upper level ridges of high pressure (depicted by
positive 500 millibar height anomalies) were present. Cooler
than average temperatures were most pronounced across eastern
regions of the Sahara Desert and southeastern Europe. Temperature
anomalies calculated from in-situ station
data using a 1961-1990 base period also depicted the large area
of warm anomalies that covered much of the mid and high latitudes
of the Northern Hemisphere. |
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Temperature
- Indications of a likely trend toward
El Niño conditions continued during January, as the
global land and ocean temperature was the warmest in the 1880 to
present record or 0.69°C (1.24°F) above the long-term
average
- Temperatures averaged across land areas were also warmest on
record, or 1.35°C (2.43°F) above the long-term January
mean
- Ocean temperatures ranked as third warmest, or 0.41°C
(0.74°F) above the 1880-2000 mean
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- Based on data available at the time of this report,
temperatures in the extratropical regions of the Northern
Hemisphere (90°N-20°N) were warmest on record for January,
or 1.15°C (2.07°F) above the 1880-2000 mean
- Globally, the period November-January
was the second warmest on record, or 0.57°C (1.03°F) above
average
- Significant positive temperature anomalies during the November-January
period were centered across the eastern half of the United
States
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Precipitation
- Drier than average weather prevailed across much of the United
States, southern Europe and large areas of Australia
- Above average precipitation fell in eastern Brazil, Indonesia,
Scandinavia and Japan
- Additional details on significant precipitation events can be
found on the Global
Regional page
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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.
Citing This Report
NOAA National Climatic Data Center, State of the Climate: Global Analysis for January 2002, published online February 2002, retrieved on May 23, 2013 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/2002/1.
