NOAA: 2014 is shaping up as hottest year on record

[Valin]

CNN:

Shelby Lin Erdman

November 30, 2014

 

(CNN) -- The first ten months of 2014 have been the hottest since record keeping began more than 130 years ago, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

 

That may be hard to believe for people in places like Buffalo, New York, which saw a record early snowfall this year.

But NOAA says, despite the early bitter cold across parts of the United States in recent weeks, it's been a hot year so far for the Earth.

 

With two months left on the calendar, 2014 is shaping up to be the hottest year on record.

 

The average global temperature between January and October has been 0.68 degrees Celsius (1.22 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than the 20th century's average global temperature of 14.1 C (57.4 F).

 

NOAA's analysis is an important "health gauge" indicating an ominous trend for the planet, says CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam.

 

"It's becoming increasingly more difficult to be a skeptic of the causes of our warming planet," he says.

 

(Snip)