Contents of this Section:


Global Highlights

  • The combined global land and ocean average surface temperature for November 2009 was 0.60°C (1.08°F) above the 20th century average of 12.9°C (55.2°F). This is the fourth warmest such value on record.
  • The combined global land and ocean average surface temperature for September-November 2009 was the fourth warmest on record for the season, 0.59°C (1.06°F) above the 20th century average of 14.0°C (57.1°F).
  • For the year to date, the combined global land and ocean surface temperature of 14.6 °C (58.2 °F) was the fifth-warmest January-November period on record. This value is 0.56°C (1.01°F) above the 20th century average.
  • The worldwide ocean surface temperature for November 2009 was the fourth warmest on record for November, 0.51°C (0.92°F) above the 20th century average of 15.8°C (60.4°F).
  • The seasonal (September-November 2009) worldwide ocean surface temperature was also the fourth warmest on record, 0.50°C (0.90°F) above the 20th century average of 16.0°C (60.7°F).
  • In the Southern Hemisphere, both the November 2009 average temperature for land areas, and the Hemisphere as a whole (land and ocean surface combined), represented the warmest November on record.

Please Note: The data presented in this report are preliminary. Ranks and anomalies may change as more complete data are received and processed. Effective with the July 2009 State of the Climate Report, NCDC transitioned to the new version (version 3b) of the extended reconstructed sea surface temperature (ERSST) dataset. ERSST.v3b is an improved extended SST reconstruction over version 2. For more information about the differences between ERSST.v3b and ERSST.v2 and to access the most current data, please visit NCDC's Global Surface Temperature Anomalies page.


Introduction

Temperature anomalies for November 2009 and September-November 2009 are shown on the dot maps below. The dot maps on the left provide a spatial representation of anomalies calculated from the Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN) dataset of land surface stations using a 1961-1990 base period. The dot maps on the right are a product of a merged land surface and sea surface temperature (SST) anomaly analysis developed by Smith et al. (2008). For the merged land surface and SST analysis, temperature anomalies with respect to the 1971-2000 average for land and ocean are analyzed separately and then merged to form the global analysis. For more information, please visit NCDC's Global Surface Temperature Anomalies page.

November

The combined global land and ocean surface temperature for November 2009 tied with 2008 as the fourth warmest November on record since records began in 1880. The combined global land and ocean temperature anomaly was 0.60°C (1.08°F) above the 20th century average. Sea surface temperatures (SST) during November 2009 were warmer than average across much of the world's oceans, with cooler-than-average conditions across the higher-latitude southern oceans and northern parts of the Atlantic and eastern Pacific oceans. The November 2009 worldwide ocean SST also ranked as the fourth warmest on record, 0.51°C (0.92°F) above the 20th century average of 15.8°C (60.4°F).

Meanwhile, the worldwide land surface temperature tied with 1990 as the eighth warmest November on record. During November, warmer-than-average temperatures were present across large portions of the world's land areas with the exception of cooler-than-average conditions across Alaska, southern South America, and a large area of cooler-than-average conditions across Asia. The November 2009 worldwide land surface temperature anomaly was 0.82°C (1.48°F) above the 20th century average of 5.9°C (42.6°F).

In the Southern Hemisphere, the November 2009 average temperature for the Hemisphere as a whole (land and ocean surface combined) was 0.60°C (1.08°F) above the 20th century average—the warmest November on record. The Southern Hemisphere land only temperature during November 2009 also represented the warmest November on record, with an anomaly of 1.05°C (1.89°F) above the 20th century average. The November 2009 Southern Hemisphere ocean temperature ranked as the second warmest on record, behind 1997.

According to the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BoM), November 2009 was abnormally warm across southeastern Australia. New South Wales and Victoria set new records for the largest mean temperature anomaly ever recorded for an Australian state—with anomalies of 4.61°C (8.30°F) and 4.36°C (7.85°F) above average, respectively. Australia as a whole, had its warmest November on record with a mean temperature anomaly of 1.87°C (3.37°F) above average. However, maximum temperatures across Australia were 2.12°C (3.82°F) above average—resulting in the second highest maximum temperature, behind 2006, with a maximum temperature anomaly of 2.17°C (3.91°F) above the 1961-1990 average. Statewide records were also broken, with New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmania, surpassing the previous largest maximum temperature anomaly recorded for an Australian state. The highest minimum temperature record for the continent was also broken, with an anomaly of 1.61°C (2.90) above average. A complete November 2009 Climate Summary for Australia is available, courtesy of Australia's Bureau of Meteorology (BoM).

According to the Environment Canada, the Canadian province Ontario experienced a record-breaking month, with many locations breaking records that go as far back as the 1940s. Pickle Lake had a November mean temperature of 0.0°C (32.0°F), breaking the previous record of -2°C (28.4°F) set in 1981. The average November mean temperature for Pickle Lake is -7.5°C (18.5°F).

According to the Met Office, the United Kingdom experienced its warmest November since 2003 and the seventh warmest since records began in 1914. England had its warmest November since 1994 and the third warmest in a 96-year historical record.

Across the equatorial Pacific Ocean, El Niño persisted during November 2009. Consequently, sea surface temperatures across the equatorial Pacific Ocean were between 1.0-2.0°C (1.8-3.6°F) above average during the month. El Niño is expected to strengthen and last through the Northern Hemisphere winter 2009-2010, according to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center (CPC).

Season (September-November)

The combined global land and ocean surface temperature during September-November 2009 tied with 2004 as the fourth warmest on record. During the season, warmer-than-average temperatures engulfed much of the planet's surface, with the exception of cooler-than-average conditions across central Asia, southern South America, and parts of the central contiguous United States. The seasonal temperature for the worldwide ocean surface also tied with 2004 as the fourth warmest on record, 0.50°C (0.90°F) above the 20th century average.

Year-to-date (January-November)

The January-November 2009 Blended Land and Ocean Surface Temperature Anomalies in degree CelsiusJanuary-November 2009 map of temperature anomalies shows the presence of warmer-than-average conditions across most of the globe's surface area, with the exception of cooler-than-average conditions across the southern oceans, and along the eastern North Pacific Ocean. The combined global land and ocean surface temperature for the year-to-date period tied with 2007 as the fifth warmest January-November period on record. This value is 0.56°C (1.01°F) above the 20th century average.

The average position of the upper-level ridges of high pressure and troughs of low pressure (depicted by positive and negative 500-millibar height anomalies on the November 2009 height and anomaly mapNovember 2009 map and September-November 2009 height and anomaly mapSeptember-November 2009, respectively) are generally reflected by areas of positive and negative temperature anomalies at the surface, respectively. For other Global products, please see the Climate Monitoring Global Products page.

Images of sea surface temperature conditions are available for all weeks during 2009 from the weekly SST page.

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Temperature Rankings and Graphics

Current Month | Seasonal | Year-to-date

NovemberAnomalyRank
(out of 130 years)
(Next) Warmest on Record
°C°FYear°C°F
Global
Land+0.82+1.488th warmest*2004 +1.34+2.41
Ocean+0.51+0.924th warmest1997 +0.55+0.99
Land and Ocean+0.60+1.084th warmest*2004 +0.72+1.30
Northern Hemisphere
Land+0.73+1.3111th warmest2001 +1.59+2.86
Ocean+0.53+0.955th warmest2006 +0.65+1.17
Land and Ocean+0.61+1.108th warmest2004 +0.96+1.73
Southern Hemisphere
Land+1.05+1.89Warmest(1990) +0.86+1.55
Ocean+0.52+0.942nd warmest1997 +0.57+1.03
Land and Ocean+0.60+1.08Warmest(1997) +0.59+1.06

*Signifies a tie

September–NovemberAnomalyRank
(out of 130 years)
(Next) Warmest on Record
°C°FYear°C°F
Global
Land+0.86+1.554th warmest2005 +1.13+2.03
Ocean+0.50+0.904th warmest*2003 +0.56+1.01
Land and Ocean+0.59+1.064th warmest*2005 +0.66+1.19
Northern Hemisphere
Land+0.85+1.536th warmest2005 +1.28+2.30
Ocean+0.52+0.946th warmest2006 +0.64+1.15
Land and Ocean+0.65+1.176th warmest2005 +0.83+1.49
Southern Hemisphere
Land+0.88+1.58Warmest(2006) +0.85+1.53
Ocean+0.50+0.903rd warmest1997 +0.58+1.04
Land and Ocean+0.55+0.992nd warmest1997 +0.61+1.10

*Signifies a tie

January–NovemberAnomalyRank
(out of 130 years)
Warmest on Record
°C°FYear°C°F
Global
Land+0.81+1.465th warmest2007 +0.99+1.78
Ocean+0.47+0.856th warmest1998 +0.52+0.94
Land and Ocean+0.56+1.015th warmest*2005 +0.62+1.12
Northern Hemisphere
Land+0.83+1.498th warmest2007 +1.15+2.07
Ocean+0.47+0.856th warmest2005 +0.54+0.97
Land and Ocean+0.61+1.107th warmest2005 +0.72+1.30
Southern Hemisphere
Land+0.73+1.313rd warmest2005 +0.83+1.49
Ocean+0.49+0.884th warmest1998 +0.55+0.99
Land and Ocean+0.52+0.944th warmest*1998 +0.58+1.04

*Signifies a tie

The most current data may be accessed via the Global Surface Temperature Anomalies page.

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Precipitation

The maps below represent anomaly values based on the GHCN dataset of land surface stations using a base period of 1961-1990. The areas with the wettest anomalies during the Northern Hemisphere autumn (September-November) included the British Isles, the central and southeastern contiguous U.S., from southern Brazil to northeastern Argentina, and parts of India and eastern Asia. The driest anomalies during September-November 2009 were observed across parts of eastern Australia, southeastern Asia, and northern South America.

During November 2009, above-average precipitation fell over areas that included the British Isles, southern India, eastern Asia, and parts of southern South America. Drier-than-average conditions were present across parts of eastern Australia, southeastern Asia, the southern Pacific islands, eastern and northern Brazil, and most of the contiguous United States.

Across the United Kingdom, precipitation was well above average during November 2009, with many areas receiving over twice the average November rainfall. Overall, November 2009 was the wettest November across the United Kingdom since records began in 1914, exceeding the previous record set in November 1951 by 22 mm (1 inch). In Ireland, precipitation amounts were also twice the average November rainfall for most stations.

Ontario, Canada, experienced drier-than-average conditions during November 2009. The city of Sarnia had its second driest November in over a century, while Kingston experienced its driest November since 1930.

Other notable precipitation extremes during November 2009 include copious rainfall across southern India on November 9th. The heavy rain triggered deadly floods and landslides that claimed at least 75 lives and destroyed nearly 300 homes. Heavy downpours fell in El Salvador, resulting in fatal floods and landslides that killed 192 people and affected over 14,000 people.

Additional details on flooding and drought can also be found on the November 2009 Global Hazards 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.

Quayle, R.G., T.C. Peterson, A.N. Basist, and C. S. Godfrey, 1999: An operational near-real-time global temperature index. Geophys. Res. Lett., 26, 333-335.

Smith, T.M., and R.W. Reynolds (2005), A global merged land air and sea surface temperature reconstruction based on historical observations (1880-1997), J. Clim., 18, 2021-2036.

Smith, et al (2008), Improvements to NOAA's Historical Merged Land-Ocean Surface Temperature Analysis (1880-2006), J. Climate., 21, 2283-2293.

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Citing This Report

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Monthly Global Climate Report for November 2009, published online December 2009, retrieved on March 18, 2024 from https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/monthly-report/global/200911.