NASA has confirmed that 2014 was the hottest year since 1880, changing earlier conclusions that global warming had already stopped.
According to records, the last hottest year was in 2010, which was four years ago. This led scientists to believe that global warming had already stopped in its tracks. What baffled scientists is that 2014 was not even an El Niño year.
"This is the first year since 1997 that the record warmest year was not an El Niño year at the beginning of the year, because the last three have been," director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies Gavin Schmidt said.
Schmidt also added that the study is the latest in a series of hot decades.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shares the same observations with NASA. Although there were slight differences in the two agencies' observations, both agreed that last year was indeed the hottest year on record since the late 1800s.
NASA's records show that 2014 came in with an average temperature of 14.68 degrees Celsius or 58.42 degrees Fahrenheit, 0.68 degrees Celsius or 1.22 degrees Fahrenheit.
According to NOAA, 2014 had global temperatures averaging 14.58 degrees Celsius or 58.24 degrees Fahrenheit, 0.69 degrees Celsius or 1.24 degrees Fahrenheit above the twentieth century's average.
Last year, oceanic temperatures went one Fahrenheit above its average, NOAA shares. The change in the ocean's temperature was the main culprit for the all new record. But typically, instances such as this only happens during an El Niño year.
The change in climate trends, as recent studies have showed, cannot be seen in one year alone. Based on observations by scientists and researchers, the warmest year comes every four or five years after the last one has been recorded.
"The globe is warmer now than it has been in the last 100 years and more likely in at least 5,000 years, Any wisps of doubt that human activities are at fault are now gone with the wind," Jennifer Francis, a climate scientist at Rutgers University said.
In December last year, scientists have already estimated that 2014 may be the hottest year of the century, as far as records show. The World Meteorological Organization has announced their report at last year's U.N. climate talks held in Lima, Peru.
