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| The March-May 2000 land and ocean temperatures continued to average well above the 1880-1999 long-term mean. This is the 24th consecutive March-May period (Northern Hemisphere spring season) in which land and ocean temperatures were above average. The combined land/ocean temperature was 0.48C above the long term mean which tied 1990 as the second warmest March-May period on record. Land surface temperatures also tied 1990 as the second warmest, 0.96C above average. These temperatures were exceeded only by those experienced during the extremely strong 1997/1998 El Nino episode. Sea surface temperatures remained relatively cool as the cold phase of El Nino (La Nina) persisted in the equatorial waters of the Pacific. The average sea surface temperature was 0.27C above average, the eighth warmest March-May period since 1880. |
| As in recent seasons, temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere north of 20 degrees North remained abnormally warm while temperatures in the tropics (20N-20S) continued to be held down by the persistence of the cold phase of El Nino (La Nina). Temperatures in the tropics were near normal, as the seasonal average was only 0.18C above average. |  larger image |
| Conversely, this March-May season was the warmest on record in the Northern Hemisphere Extratropics (20N-90N) where the seasonal average temperature was 0.91C above the 1880-1999 long-term average, 0.09C warmer than the previous all-time March-May high that occurred in 1990. Temperatures in the Southern Hemisphere south of 20 degrees South were also very warm. The average temperature in this latitude band was 0.57C above average, the third warmest March-May season. (Note: Averages in the 20S-90S latitude band are calculated using data from areas that have historically been well sampled from ships and buoys.) |
| The adjacent plot shows the spatial distribution of temperature anomalies throughout the world based on a 1961-1990 base period. Although data is not currently available in some locations, this figure clearly shows above-normal temperatures throughout most regions during the March-May period. |  larger image |
| Much above-normal temperatures stretched from Western Europe into Central and Southeast Asia. Temperatures in excess of 3C above normal were recorded in many locations. Warmer than normal conditions also covered most of the North American continent, with anomalies greater than 2C throughout the Northern Great Plains and southwestern areas of the United States. In the Southern Hemisphere, most regions saw near-normal or sligthly cooler than normal temperatures. |
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Data collected by NOAA's TIROS-N polar-orbiting satellites and adjusted for time-dependent biases by NASA and the Global Hydrology and Climate Center at the University of Alabama in Huntsville indicate that temperatures in the lower half of the atmosphere (lowest 8km) were below the 20-year (1979-1998) average during the March-May season. |
| The below-average global temperature (-0.04C below the 1979-1998 mean) is primarily a reflection of colder than normal conditions in the tropics caused by the persistance of the cold phase of El Nino (La Nina). Temperatures in the tropics (20N-20S) were -0.47C below the 1979-1998 average temperature, the second coldest March-May season on record. Conversely, temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere Extratropics (90N-20N) were 0.33C above average, making this March-May season the fifth warmest such period. Temperatures south of 20S averaged -0.02C below the 1979-1998 mean. |
Precipitation
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Much of the Southern Hemisphere received above normal precipitation during the March-May season. Several tropical cyclones brought heavy rain to usually dry areas in northern Australia. Much-above-normal precipitation also fell throughout much of Argentina and parts of northern Brazil and Venezuela. |
| In the Northern Hemisphere, many areas are notable for having a lack of precipitation. Drought severity in Pakistan increased due to a continuation of below-normal precipitation. Southeastern and midwestern areas of the United States also continued to suffer through long-term drought as precipitation was more than 100mm (4 inches) below normal throughout much of these regions. Precipitation was also below normal throughout much of China, and the Mediterranean. |
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.
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NCDC / Climate Research / Climate of 2000 / March-May / Search / Help
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http://lwf.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/2000/spr/global.html Downloaded Saturday, 05-Jul-2008 20:49:30 EDT Last Updated Wednesday, 06-Jul-2005 14:47:15 EDT by Jeff.Cox@noaa.gov Please see the NCDC Contact Page if you have questions or comments. |
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