Climate crisisApril 2020 Was Earth’s 2nd Hottest April on Record

Published 27 May 2020

Global warming is continuing unabated, with April becoming the third month in a row to rank second-hottest on record for the globe — after the year kicked off with the hottest January ever recorded in 141 years of record-keeping. The average global temperature in April was 1.91 degrees F (1.06 degrees C) above the 20th-century average.

April became the third month in a row to rank second-hottest on record for the globe after the year kicked off with the hottest January ever recorded in 141 years of record-keeping, according to scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information.

It was also the second-warmest year to date (January through April), as Arctic sea ice continued its retreat. 

Below are highlights from NOAA’s latest monthly global climate report:

Climate by the Numbers
April 2020

The average global temperature in April was 1.91 degrees F (1.06 degrees C) above the 20th-century average, making April 2020 the second-hottest behind April 2016. 

The eight warmest Aprils have all occurred since 2010, and April 2020 marked the 44th consecutive April above the 20th-century average.

Year to Date — January through April
The global temperature from January through April was 2.05 degrees F (1.14 degrees C) above average, which is the second-hottest January-through-April period on record behind 2016. 

Europe and Asia had their warmest year to date on record, while the Caribbean region and South America had their second warmest. No land or ocean areas had record-cold temperatures.

More Notable Climate Events in the April Report

·  Ocean temperatures were historically hot: The global ocean surface temperature during April 2020 was 1.49 degrees F (0.83 of a degree C) above the 20th-century average. It was the highest April ocean temperature since global records began in 1880. 

·  Arctic sea ice was down substantially: Sea ice coverage for April 2020 was 6.5% below the 1981–2010 average and the fourth-smallest April extent on record for the Arctic.

Fuller Picture
The April 2020 globally averaged land and ocean surface temperature departure from average was the second highest for the month in the 141-year NOAA global temperature dataset record, which dates back to 1880.

This monthly summary, developed by scientists at NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, is part of the suite of climate services NOAA provides to government, business, academia and the public to support informed decision-making.

Temperature

The April 2020 global land and ocean surface temperature was 1.91°F (1.06°C) above the 20th-century average of 56.7°F (13.7°C). This was the second highest April temperature in the 141-year record. Only April 2016 was warmer at +2.03°F (+1.13°C). 

·  April 2020 marked the 44th consecutive April and the 424th consecutive month with temperatures, at least nominally, above the 20th-century average.