- Asia, Africa, North America and South America each had their warmest August on record.
- Record-warm temperatures covered nearly 13% of the world’s surface this August, which was the highest August percentage since the start of records in 1951.
- August 2023 set a record for the highest monthly sea surface temperature anomaly (+1.85°F or +1.03°C) of any month in NOAA’s 174-year record.
- Antarctica saw its fourth consecutive month with the lowest sea ice extent on record, and global sea ice extent set a record low for August.
- Eight of the 19 named storms that occurred across the globe in August reached major tropical cyclone strength (≥111 mph), which tied August 2015 for the most on record for the month.
Globally, August 2023 was the warmest August in the 174-year NOAA record. The year-to-date (January–August) global surface temperature ranked as the second warmest such period on record. According to NCEI’s Global Annual Temperature Outlook and data through August, there is a 95% probability that 2023 will rank among the two warmest years on record.
The heat has taxed power grids and agriculture the world over and led to deadly heat waves. Higher temperatures fueled extreme weather events, including a spate of hurricanes and typhoons that ravaged China and the US in recent weeks. Eight of the 19 storms that formed in August had winds that touched 111 miles (179 kilometers) per hour or more, matching 2015 for the most on record for the month.
This year’s heat is getting a boost from a growing El Niño in the Pacific, but the long-term trend has seen the last 44 years post temperatures higher than the 20th-century average.
“As long as emissions continue driving a steady march of background warming, we expect further records to be broken in years to come,” said Sarah Kapnick, one of NOAA’s chief scientists.