NOAA Says May, 2014 Was World's Warmest On Record

On a global basis, May, 2014 was the
warmest on record says NOAA.  

Backing up earlier measurements, NOAA National Climatic Data Center confirms that May, 2014, on a global basis, was the warmest on record in data dating back to the 1880s.

Both the ocean and land temperatures across the globe set new record highs in May, 2014, according to the report, released today.

So far, 2014 is the fifth warmest on record, based on data from the first five months of the year.

An El Nino pattern, which brings warm water to the eastern Pacific Ocean and tends to boost worldwide temperatures, seems to be getting started.

El Nino, combined with the effects of global warming, might be responsible for the record setting global heat in May.

Four of the five warmest Mays have occured in the past five years, according to the NOAA report.

The last time the world experienced a cooler than normal month was 29 years ago in February, 1985. The last cooler than normal May was in 1976, according to the report.

NASA and the Japanese Meteorological Agency each said last week that their measurements also indicated May, 2014 was the warmest on record.