Global warming: May the second-warmest on record; 2012 now tracking toward ... - Summit County Citizens Voice

Almost every state reported above-average temperatures in May 2012.

March-May seasonal reading 5 degrees above long-term average

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY â€" May temperatures across the U.S. were 3.3 degrees above the long-term average, making it the second-warmest May on record for the country, according to the monthly state of the climate report from the National Climatic Data Center.

The March to May spring season (5 degrees above average), and the year-to-date are both the warmest on record.

Taken readings from thousands of stations across the country, many adjusted to account for the influence of nearby urbanization, the temperatures are averaged to get a picture of long-term climate trends.

The warm May temperatures also contributed to the warmest-ever spring season (March â€" May) on record for the U.S., at 5.2 degrees above the 1901 â€" 2000 average and 2 degrees warmed than the previous record, set way back in 1910. At this pace, 2012 is likely to become the warmest year on record.

Only Washington and Oregon reported below average temps for the month, while Idaho, Montana and Wyoming reported near-average readings.

Exceptionally warm readings were reported from the Northeast across the Midwest, into the central and southern plains and as far west as Colorado, which reported its seventh-warmest May.

The spring season (March â€" May) as a whole marked the largest departure from seasonal norms for any such period in recorded U.S. climate history.

Thirty-one states reported record-warmth during the three-month period and 11 states reported temps ranking in the top ten. Only Oregon and Washington, under the lingering impacts of La Niña, had spring temperatures near normal.

June 2011 to May 2012 also was the warmest 12-month period of any 12 months on record in the contiguous 48 states, at 3.2 degrees above the long-term average for the period. The 12-month period included the second-warmest summer, fourth-warmest winter, and the warmest spring on record.

Every state across the contiguous U.S. had warmer than average temperatures for the period, except Washington, which was near normal.

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Filed under: climate and weather, global warming, seasons Tagged: | climate change, global warming, May 2012 temperatures, National Climatic Data Center, State of the Climate