JULY 7, 2023:
UNDATED (AP)- Earth’s average temperature set a new unofficial record high on Thursday, the third such milestone in a week that already rated as the hottest on record.
The planetary average hit 63 degrees Fahrenheit (17.23 degrees Celsius), surpassing the 62.9-degree mark (17.18-degree mark) set Tuesday and equaled Wednesday, according to data from the University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer, a tool that uses satellite data and computer simulations to measure the world’s condition.
That average includes places that are sweltering under dangerous heat — like Jingxing, China, which checked in almost 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 degrees Celsius) — and the merely unusually warm, like Antarctica, where temperatures across much of the continent were as much as 8 degrees Fahrenheit (4.5 degrees Celsius) above normal this week.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Thursday issued a note of caution about the Maine tool’s findings, saying it could not confirm data that results in part from computer modeling.
“Although NOAA cannot validate the methodology or conclusion of the University of Maine analysis, we recognize that we are in a warm period due to climate change,” NOAA said.
Still, the Maine data has been widely regarded as another troubling sign of climate change around the globe. Some climate scientists said this week they weren’t surprised to see the unofficial records.
Robert Watson, a scientist and former chairman of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, said governments and the private sector “are not truly committed to address climate change.” Nor are citizens, he said.
“They demand cheap energy, cheap food and do not want to pay the true cost of food and energy,” Watson said.
JULY 6, 2023:
UNDATED (AP)- Earth’s average temperature on Wednesday (July 6, 2023) remained at an unofficial record high set the day before, the latest grim milestone in a week that has seen series of climate-change-driven extremes. The average global temperature was 17.18 Celsius (62.9 degrees Fahrenheit), according to the University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer, a tool that uses satellite data and computer simulations to measure the world’s condition. That matched a record set Tuesday, and came after a previous record of 17.01 Celsius (62.6 degrees Fahrenheit) was set Monday. While some countries had colder weather than usual, heat waves hit cities from Peru to Canada.
Extended version:
JULY 5, 2023, UPDATE:
UNDATED (AP)- The planet’s temperature spiked on Tuesday (July 4, 2023) to its hottest day in at least 44 years and likely much longer. Wednesday could become the third straight day that global temperatures unofficially hit a record-breaking high. The numbers from the University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer project come on top of months of record warmth in the North Atlantic, record low sea ice in Antarctica, and a strengthening El Nino. Temperatures in cities across the globe are setting high marks for heat, and Wednesday’s forecast shows little relief ahead. Higher temperatures translate into brutal conditions for people all over the world.
Extended version:
JULY 5, 2023:
BOSTON (AP) — Revelers across the nation braved heat and heavy downpours to take part in Fourth of July activities Tuesday (July 4, 2023), celebrating the nation’s founding with parades, fireworks and hot dog eating contests at a time of lingering political divisions. In Boston, revelers dodged raindrops to nab a coveted space on the grassy oval directly in front of the Hatch Shell along the Charles River ahead of the traditional Boston Pops July Fourth concert and fireworks display. In another longstanding July Fourth celebration, fans crowded to watch Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest in the Coney Island section of New York City.
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