Last Month Was Earth’s Hottest in History

But while previous months were merely the hottest months on record (as in “the hottest February”, “the hottest March”, etc.), NASA data states that July was the hottest month since records began back in 1880, bar none. In Florida, the statewide average rose 3 degrees to 84 degrees, making it the second warmest month on record and the hottest July on record. But temperatures have recently spiked, setting record highs two years in a row, in 2014 and 2015. Gavin Schmidt, a climatologist at NASA, said there was a “99 percent chance” that 2016 would break an annual heat record.

Even after the fading of a strong El Nino, which raises global temperatures on top of man-made climate change, July broke global temperature records.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, another agency that keeps track of the global average temperature, will be releasing its own record of July 2016 temperature on August 17.

Kuwait recorded a temperature of 129.2°F (54°C) on July 21 in what may be the hottest temperature on record in the Eastern Hemisphere if it is confirmed.

“The scary thing is that we are moving into an era where it will be a surprise when each new month or year isn’t one of the hottest on record”.

However, El Niño only contributes to about of July’s temperature increase, climate scientist David Karoly said, according to the Guardian.

Karoly pointed out that Nasa’s baseline temperatures, which new measurements are compared against, already included about 0.5C of warming in global temperatures. It was also 0.84°C warmer than global average from 1951-1980.

A report published in the Mashable News said, “It is now virtually certain that 2016 will beat 2015 for the dubious distinction of the hottest year on record”. That meant July was about 1.3C warmer than the pre-industrial average.

In July, the average temperature in the United States of America was 75.3 degrees, almost 2 degrees hotter than the 20th century average, the NOAA reported.

Scientists blame mostly man-made climate change from the burning of fossil fuel for the record heat spike.