As February draws to a close, the United States of America Record, finds itself enveloped in a remarkable warmth that continues to shatter temperature records.
Following January’s unseasonably warm trend, February is now stepping into the spotlight with an onslaught of record-breaking high temperatures in various regions.
On Monday alone, a staggering 78 records for daily maximum high temperatures were either broken or tied across the country, as reported by preliminary data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Weather Prediction Center.
In a striking turn of events, several cities marked their all-time February high temperature records on Monday. Omaha, Nebraska soared to 80 degrees, Des Moines, Iowa peaked at 78 degrees, and even Minneapolis reached an unexpected 65 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
The magnitude of this warmth was exemplified by a weather station in Waterloo, Iowa, where records stretching back to 1895 were shattered by a staggering 14 degrees above the previous February 26th high. Across the Midwest, numerous other stations recorded highs surpassing their previous records by more than 10 degrees.
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But the heatwave didn’t relent with the passing of Monday. Dozens more record highs were anticipated to be set on Tuesday, amplifying the extraordinary nature of this climatic anomaly.
Even the Lone Star State experienced its share of scorching temperatures, with parts of Texas reaching nearly 100 degrees Fahrenheit, further underscoring the intensity of this unseasonable warmth.
Meanwhile, on a global scale, the trend of rising temperatures persists. Berkeley Earth, a renowned research group, declared Tuesday that January 2024 stood as the warmest January on record since at least 1850.
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This marked the eighth consecutive month of record warmth and the seventh consecutive month where temperatures averaged more than 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit above the 1850-1900 average.
With such trends showing no signs of abating, experts at Berkeley Earth have expressed that 2024 is poised to continue this pattern of warmth, estimating a 60% likelihood of it becoming the warmest year on record, with a further 39% chance of it clinching the title of the second warmest year.
As the world grapples with the undeniable reality of climate change, these unprecedented temperature records serve as a stark reminder of the urgent need for concerted global action to mitigate its impact.
