August of summer 2016 tied July for the hottest month in 136 years of modern record keeping, according to scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies.
The seasonal temperature typically peaks in July, making this a rare occasion for the summer month. August was .98 degrees Celsius warmer than the month’s recorded temps between 1951 and 1980. And 0.016 degrees Celsius warmer than its previously recorded high in 2014.
According to NASA's database, August is the 11th record-breaking month in a row.
Gavin Schmidt, director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, says that excess heat from greenhouse gases, along with a minor boost from El Niño, is to blame for the rising heat levels.
“Monthly rankings, which vary by only a few hundredths of a degree, are inherently fragile,” Mr Schmidt said in a statement. “We stress that the long-term trends are the most important for understanding the ongoing changes that are affecting our planet.”
The average global temperature for the year was 1.31 Celsius in July. A new average will be calculated for August when the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration releases its data on September 20.
