Globe had 2nd warmest year to date and 3rd warmest June on record

In terms of Earth’s seasonal change, June is a significant month: It marks the summer solstice for the Northern Hemisphere and the winter solstice for the Southern Hemisphere. It also means the calendar year is half-over, and it’s time for a climate check-up.

Let’s dive deeper into our monthly analysis to see how the planet fared for the month and the year to date*:

Climate by the numbers

June

The average global temperature set in June 2017 was 1.48 degrees F above the 20th-century average of 59.9 degrees, according to scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information. This average temperature was the third highest for June in the 1880-2017 record, behind June 2015 (second) and a record-breaking June 2016. June 2017 marks the 41st consecutive June and the 390th consecutive month with temperatures at least nominally above the 20th-century average.

*Year to date | January through June 2017

The year-to-date average temperature was 1.64 degrees F above the 20th-century average of 56.3 degrees. This was the second-warmest for this period, 0.29 of a degree behind the record set in 2016.  

Other notable climate events and facts around the world last month included:

Below-average sea ice at the poles continues

• The average Arctic sea ice extent (coverage) for June was 7.5 percent below the 1981-2010 average, the sixth smallest for the month since satellite records began in 1979. The average Antarctic sea ice extent was 6.3 percent below average, the second smallest on record for June behind 2002.

Warmer-than-average lands and oceans

• The globally averaged land-surface temperature (fourth warmest for the month of June) and the sea-surface temperature (third warmest) ranked second highest on record for the year to date.

Africa and Europe lead the continents in warmth rankings

• Africa had its warmest June on record; Europe, its second (tied with 2007); South America, its third (tied with 2005); Asia, it’s eighth; North America, its 10th; and Oceania, its 50th (tied with 1927).  

More: You can find NOAA’s report and download related maps and images by visiting the NCEI website.