Scientists say 2015 is on pace to surpass 2014 as the hottest year on record. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Thursday reported that the first eight months of the year beat global records for heat.
WASHINGTON – Earth’s record-breaking heat is sounding an awful lot like a broken record.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Thursday that August, this past summer and the first eight months of 2015 all smashed global records for heat.
That’s the fifth consecutive record hot season and the fourth consecutive record hot month. Meteorologists say 2015 is a near certainty to eclipse 2014 as the hottest year on record.
Since 2000, Earth has broken monthly heat records 30 times and seasonal heat records 11 times. Scientists blame a combination of human-caused climate change and natural El Niño.
Earth broke the August record by a sixth of a degree and the summer record by a fifth of a degree. Records go back to 1880.
