Warmest Arctic Autumn on Record

Satellite-observed photosynthesis across high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. Green shows expanded plant growth due to climate change while rust color indicates less vegetation than the long-term average.

Fall temperatures across the Arctic have been warmer than during any other autumn on record, according to U.S. experts.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) published the statistic, adding that the warmth is due to more ocean water being exposed to sunlight after the near-record melt of Arctic ice over the summer.

NOAA researchers found that the polar region was 9.0 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than normal over the past two months.

The temperate autumn comes on the heels of two years that have seen all-time records shattered.

In a warming trend that began in the mid-1960s, 2007 was the warmest year in the Arctic on record, followed closely by 2008 in second place.

NOAA points out that the climate change is also bringing more greenness at high latitudes as shrubs begin to grow farther north on landscapes that were once rooted in permafrost.

Graphic: NOAA