There is a lot of conflicting information about whether or not 2008 was an abnormally hot or cold year.
It’s official though - 2008 was among the ten warmest years on record and was marked by weather extremes and the second-lowest level of arctic ice cover according to the to data sources compiled by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).The year 2008 is likely to rank as the 10th warmest year on record since the beginning of the instrumental climate records in 1850, reports WMO. The global combined sea-surface and land-surface air temperature for 2008 is currently estimated at 0.31°C/0.56°F above the 1961-1990 annual average of 14.00°C/57.2°F.
The Arctic Sea ice extension dropped to its second-lowest level during the melting season since satellite measurements began in 1979 reports WMO. Climate extremes, including devastating floods, severe and persistent droughts, snowstorms, heatwaves and coldspells, were recorded in many parts of the world. Their report contains a comprehensive and somewhat frightening overview of all the world’s weather extremes for 2008. We have included a small sample below.
In most parts of Finland, Norway and Sweden, winter 2007/08 was the warmest recorded since the beginning of measurements. Some areas in Turkey had their coldest January nights in nearly 50 years. This extreme cold weather caused hundreds of casualties in Afghanistan and China.
In March, southern Australia experienced a record heat-wave that brought scorching temperatures across the region. Adelaide experienced its longest running heat-wave on record, with 15 consecutive days of maximum temperatures above 35°C.
In Canada, several all-time high snowfall records were set during winter reaching more than 5.50m (18 feet) in many locations, including Quebec City. The accumulation of snow was heavy enough to cause numerous roofs to collapse, killing at least four people.
Sub-Saharan Africa, including West and East Africa, was affected by heavy rains, which caused the worst-ever recorded flooding in Zimbabwe and affected more than 300,000 people in West Africa during the monsoon season. Extreme rainfall intensities were recorded in northern provinces of Morocco with up to 200mm (8inches) of rainfall in less than six hours. Within the same climate anomaly context and period, intense rainfall was also recorded in south-western Europe. In Valencia, Spain, a total rainfall of 390mm (15.3inches) was recorded in 24 hours, of which 144mm (almost 6inches) were recorded in less than one hour.
In southern Asia, including India, Pakistan and Vietnam, heavy monsoon rains and torrential downpours produced flash floods, killing more than 2,600 people, and displacing 10 million people in India.
The most deadly tropical cyclone recorded in 2008 was Cyclone Nargis, which developed in the North Indian Ocean and hit Myanmar in early May, killing nearly 78,000 people and destroying thousands of homes.
To read the entire report visit: http://www.wmo.int/
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