The year 2010 has been declared the hottest year on record...
Latest figures by both NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration confirm that the year 2010 was indeed the hottest year on record, though it was tied with 2005. Interestingly, it was the wettest year on record too.
Climate record storing has been in place since the year 1880. By being the hottest and wettest year alike, as compared to more than 100 years of data, these are sure warning signs for all of us. Along with 2005, last year's global average surface temperature was 58.12° F, while the average for the 20th century was 57° F. This is more than a 1° jump, which is pretty alarming. In fact, the last 35 years have been below this average, and moreover, 9 of the 10 warmest years on record have been in this millennium, and we are hardly 11 years into it. 2010 witnessed record breaking heat waves in many places, besides floods in many countries, that made it also the wettest year on record. All these have been attributed to the effects of global warming on the earth due to the release of heat-trapping gases like carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. NOAA scientist David Easterling said, "The climate is continuing to show the influence of greenhouse gases."
These 2010 hottest year on record revelations though are not much of a surprise, since the last ten years have officially been the warmest decade ever. The previous year when average global temperatures were below normal was way back in 1976, and it does not seem like that phenomenon is going to take place in the near future.