Last month was second-ever hottest March on Earth, data shows

Just in case there was any shred of doubt, the Earth is getting hotter – as evidenced by the fact that it just recorded its second hottest March on record.

The hottest March ever was in 2016, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information.

This year is also the second hottest year to date (January to March) – again, second to 2016.

For clarity, scientists only started recording global temperatures from 1880.

The average global temperature for the last century (the years from 1900 to 1999) sits at 13.9C (57F ).

The average global land and ocean-surface temperature for March 2020 was 1.16 degrees celsius (2.09 degrees fahrenheit) above that average.

This latest recording for the month of March also marks the 423rd consecutive month with temperatures above this average.

Remarkably, the 10 hottest months of March were all recorded after 1990.