November 2006 Global Climate Report | National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)

Global Highlights:

Based on preliminary data, globally averaged combined land and sea surface temperature was fourth warmest on record for November 2006 as well as for boreal fall (September - November 2006) and sixth warmest for January-November year-to-date.
September - November temperatures were above average in Europe, southern Asia, eastern Russia, and western Alaska. Cooler-than-average conditions occurred in Siberia, the central U.S., and western Canada.
Precipitation during September - November was above average in western Alaska, the eastern U.S., most parts of Europe, southern parts of South America, and southern India. Drier than average conditions were observed in eastern Asia, central Europe, eastern Australia and the west coast of Canada.
Warm phase ENSO (El Niño) conditions remained during November.

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

Temperature anomalies for September - November and November 2006 are shown on the dot maps below. The dot map, below left, provides a spatial representation of anomalies calculated from the Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN) data set of land surface stations using a 1961-1990 base period. The dot map, below right, is a product of a merged land surface and sea surface temperature anomaly analysis developed by Smith and Reynolds (2005). Temperature anomalies with respect to the 1961-1990 mean for land and ocean are analyzed separately and then merged to form the global analysis. Additional information on this product is available.

Anomalously warm temperatures have covered much of the globe throughout the year. The January-November 2006 year-to-date map of temperature anomalies shows the presence of warmer than average temperatures across all land areas except central Russia. Warmer than average SSTs occurred in the North and South Atlantic, North Pacific and the South Indian Ocean, with cooler than average conditions observed in the South Pacific.

During boreal fall, temperatures were above average across the entire globe, with the exception of Siberia, the central U.S., and western Canada, where cooler than average temperatures were observed. Warmer than average SSTs were observed across all oceans except in the South Pacific where cooler than average SSTs were observed.

Current season's Land Surface Temperature Dot map

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Current season's blended Land and sea surface Temperature Dot map

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During November, there were above average temperatures across the U.S., Europe, southern Asia, and eastern Russia. Cooler than average temperatures were observed in Siberia, Turkey, southern Alaska, and western Canada. Warmer than average SSTs occurred in the North Atlantic and the Niño 3 and 1+2 regions. Temperatures in much of the central and eastern equatorial Pacific were more than 1°C (1.80°F) above average, and the average temperature in the Niño 3.4 region increased in November to approximately 1.21°C (2.18°F). Please see the latest ENSO discussion for additional information on the developing El Niño event.

Current month's Land SurfaceTemperature Dot map

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Current month's blended Land and sea surface Temperature Dot map

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The mean position of upper level ridges of high pressure and troughs of low pressure (depicted by positive and negative 500-millibar height anomalies on the September - November 2006 map and the November map) are generally reflected by areas of positive and negative temperature anomalies at the surface, respectively. For other Global products see the Climate Monitoring Global Products page.

Images of sea surface temperature conditions are available for all weeks during 2006 at the weekly SST page.

Temperature Rankings and Graphics

Effective with the January, 2006 report, NCDC transitioned from the use of the Operational Global Surface Temperature Index (Quayle et al. 1999) to the blended land and ocean dataset developed by Smith and Reynolds (2005). The differences between the two methods are discussed in Smith et al. 2005.

November:
November 2006 was the 4th warmest November since global surface records began in 1880 for global land and ocean surface temperatures. November land surface temperatures were 6th warmest, while ocean surface temperatures were 2nd warmest in the 127-year record behind 1997 in which a very strong 1997/1998 El Niño event was developing.

September - November:
For September - November 2006, the global land and ocean surface temperatures were 4th warmest on record. Land surface temperatures ranked 5th warmest, while ocean surface temperatures ranked 3rd warmest for the boreal fall. The year-to-date (January - November 2006) land and ocean combined temperature was tied for 6th warmest on record.

Current Month / Seasonal / Year-to-date

November	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
Global Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.74°C (+1.33°F) +0.52°C (+0.94°F) +0.58°C (+1.04°F)	6th warmest 2nd warmest 4th warmest	2004 (+1.40°C/2.52°F) 1997 (+0.54°C/0.97°F) 2004 (+0.73°C/1.31°F)
Northern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.81°C (+1.46°F) +0.66°C (+1.19°F) +0.72°C (+1.30°F)	7th warmest 1st warmest 4th warmest	2001 (+1.73°C/3.11°F) 2004 (+0.59°C/1.06°F) 2004 (+0.96°C/1.73°F)
Southern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.56°C (+1.01°F) +0.40°C (+0.72°F) +0.42°C (+0.76°F)	9th warmest 7th warmest 9th warmest	1982 (+1.45°C/2.61°F) 1997 (+0.55°C/0.99°F) 1997 (+0.58°C/1.04°F)

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September-November	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
Global Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.75°C (+1.35°F) +0.50°C (+0.90°F) +0.57°C (+1.03°F)	5th warmest 3rd warmest 4th warmest	2005 (+1.15°C/2.07°F) 1997 (+0.54°C/0.97°F) 2005 (+0.64°C/1.15°F)
Northern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.74°C (+1.33°F) +0.64°C (+1.15°F) +0.68°C (+1.22°F)	5th warmest 1st warmest 4th warmest	2005 (+1.27°C/2.29°F) 2003 (+0.63°C/1.13°F) 2005 (+0.82°C/1.48°F)
Southern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.75°C (+1.35°F) +0.39°C (+0.70°F) +0.44°C (+0.79°F)	6th warmest 6th warmest 5th warmest	1997 (+0.85°C/1.53°F) 1997 (+0.55°C/0.99°F) 1997 (+0.59°C/1.06°F)

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January-November	Anomaly	Rank	Warmest Year on Record
Global Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.73°C (+1.31°F) +0.45°C (+0.81°F) +0.52°C (+0.94°F)	6th warmest 5th warmest 6th warmest	2005 (+0.98°C/1.76°F) 1998 (+0.50°C/0.90°F) 2005 (+0.61°C/1.10°F)
Northern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.80°C (+1.44°F) +0.49°C (+0.88°F) +0.60°C (+1.08°F)	5th warmest 4th warmest 5th warmest	2005 (+1.03°C/1.85°F) 2005 (+0.55°C/0.99°F) 2005 (+0.73°C/1.31°F)
Southern Hemisphere Land Ocean Land and Ocean	+0.54°C (+0.97°F) +0.42°C (+0.76°F) +0.44°C (+0.79°F)	7th warmest 4th warmest 5th warmest	2005 (+0.86°C/1.55°F) 1998 (+0.51°C/0.92°F) 1998 (+0.55°C/0.99°F)

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

Precipitation

The maps below represent anomaly values based on the GHCN data set of land surface stations using a base period of 1961-1990. During September - November 2006, above average precipitation was observed in Scandinavia, Turkey, eastern Europe, southern India, western Alaska, eastern U.S., and southern parts of South America. Below average precipitation was observed in areas including eastern Australia, eastern Asia, central Europe, and the west coast of Canada.

During November 2006, above average precipitation fell over areas that included northeastern and northwestern U.S., eastern Brazil, most parts of Scandinavia, and eastern Asia. Heavy rain and flooding occurred in the Greater Horn, where it is said to be the worst in 50 years. Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Northwest U.S. have as well experienced heavy rain and flooding. Below average precipitation was observed in eastern Australia, where the effects of long term drought continue. Southern Europe and central U.S. were also drier than average. Additional details on flooding and drought can also be found on the November Global Hazards page.

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Precipitation Dot map in Millimeters for November

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ENSO SST Analysis

Last week of the month's ENSO condtions Map

Click here for animated loop

Sea Surface Temperatures continued to increase across the equatorial Pacific Ocean during November, indicative of a strengthening El Niño episode (shown in the adjacent animation of weekly sea surface temperature anomalies). A comprehensive summary of November 2006 ENSO conditions can be found on the ENSO monitoring page. For the latest advisory on ENSO conditions go to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center (CPC) and the CPC ENSO Diagnostic Discussion
Images of sea surface temperature conditions are available for all weeks during 2006 at the weekly SST 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.

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.

Citing This Report

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Monthly Global Climate Report for November 2006, published online December 2006, retrieved on May 1, 2024 from https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/monthly-report/global/200611.

Metadata

https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/metadata/landing-page/bin/iso?id=gov.noaa.ncdc:C00672

Additional Resources

Temperature and Precipitation Maps

Temperature Anomalies Time Series

Global Highlights:

Contents of this Section:

Citing This Report

Metadata