Newswise — Global trend since Nov. 16, 1978: +0.13 C per decade

December temperatures (preliminary)

Global composite temp.: +0.18 C (about 0.32 degrees Fahrenheit) above20-year average for December.

Northern Hemisphere: +0.41 C (about 0.74 degrees Fahrenheit) above 20-yearaverage for December.

Southern Hemisphere: -0.05 C (about 0.09 degrees Fahrenheit) below 20-yearaverage for December.

November temperatures (revised): Global Composite: +0.25 C above 20-year average Northern Hemisphere: +0.34 C above 20-year average Southern Hemisphere: +0.16 C above 20-year average

(All temperature variations are based on a 20-year average (1979-1998) forthe month reported.)

Notes on data released Jan. 12, 2009:

The eleventh warmest global December in 31 years was also the fifth warmestin the Northern Hemisphere, according to Dr. John Christy, a professor ofatmospheric science and director of the Earth System Science Center (ESSC)at The University of Alabama in Huntsville. At the same time, the SouthernHemisphere saw its tenth coolest of the past 31 Decembers.

WARMEST DECEMBERS, NH 2003 +0.62 C 2006 +0.54 C 1987 +0.52 C 1998 +0.42 C 2008 +0.41 C 2005 +0.40 C

Since November 1978, the Northern Hemisphere atmosphere has warmed more thanthree times as fast as the Southern Hemisphere atmosphere (+0.19 C to +0.06C per decade).

With a global average temperature that was 0.05 C warmer than seasonalnorms, 2008 goes into the books as the coolest year since 2000. Globaltemperatures during 2008 were influenced by a La Nina Pacific Ocean coolingevent.

Another La Nina appears to be forming in the Pacific, which could chilltemperatures through 2009.

Color maps of local temperature anomalies may soon be available on-line at:

http://climate.uah.edu/

The processed temperature data is available on-line at:

vortex.nsstc.uah.edu/data/msu/t2lt/uahncdc.lt

As part of an ongoing joint project between The University of Alabama inHuntsville, NOAA and NASA, Christy and Dr. Roy Spencer, a principal researchscientist in the ESSC, use data gathered by microwave sounding units on NOAAand NASA satellites to get accurate temperature readings for almost allregions of the Earth. This includes remote desert, ocean and rain forestareas for which reliable climate data are not otherwise available.

The satellite-based instruments measure the temperature of the atmospherefrom the surface up to an altitude of about eight kilometers above sealevel.

Once the monthly temperature data is collected and processed, it is placedin a "public" computer file for immediate access by atmospheric scientists in the U.S. and abroad.

Neither Spencer nor Christy receives any research support or funding fromoil, coal or industrial companies or organizations, or from any private orspecial interest groups. All of their climate research funding comes fromstate and federal grants or contracts.

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