NOAA temperature anomaly map showing warmer than average temperatures across much of the globe in 2010. View more images in the slideshow below. (NOAA)
Data released by NOAA puts 2010 into the history books as tying with 2005 as the warmest year globally since 1880. The newly released report is sure to fuel the ongoing climate change and global warming debate for the year to come.
The National Climatic Data Center’s information shows that the combined global land and ocean temperatures in 2010 were 1.12° F (0.62° C) above the 20th century average. This ties the year with 2005 as the warmest on record.
Land surface temperatures globally were the warmest on record as a temperature anomaly of 1.8° F (1.0° C) was recorded. The oceans fared better according to the NCDC with temperatures 0.88° F (0.49° C) above the 20th century average putting it in the books typing with as the third warmest on record.
The United States separately was warm as well although not in record-setting form. Warmer than average temperatures were recorded across much of the nation with the south being the exception. NOAA said that temperatures are increasing at a rate of 0.12° F per decade.
2010 was a relatively uneventful year for weather in Thornton.
Many years in Colorado are marked by significant weather events. The Christmas Blizzards of 2006, the severe thunderstorms that dominated June of 2009 or reaching even further back the Thornton Tornado of 1981. The same can’t entirely be said about 2010 as we experienced a relatively quiet year without any truly major events.
In terms of temperatures the year was slightly warmer than the historical average of 50.1 degrees. In 2010 Denver officially recorded an annual average of 51.2 degrees at Denver International Airport. Thornton was actually spot on Denver’s historical average at 50.1 degrees.
Denver temperatures ranged from a high of 102 degrees on July 17th down to -16 on January 7th. The July high was a record for the date but the January low didn’t fall far enough to set a record. Thornton’s high temperature for the year was 101.6 degrees and our low was -9.7 degrees – both occurring on the same dates as Denver’s.
The average high temperature for the year was 65.3 degrees – 1.1 degrees above normal. The average low was 37.0 degrees, 1.2 degrees above normal. Thornton’s average highs and lows were very close to Denver’s at 65.7 degrees and 36.8 degrees respectively.
DIA reported 47 days with temperatures at or above 90 degrees – 16 above normal. Thornton stayed cooler recording only 38 days. Low temperatures dipped below freezing on 158 days in Denver (2 above normal) while Thornton had one more with 159 days.
Snowfall
The first half of the 2010 to 2011 snowfall season was dismal as Denver recorded a mere 4.8 inches and Thornton recorded 4.9 inches. This is the second lowest total on record for the period with the only year with less snow being 1888 when 3.8 inches was recorded.
2010 Year in Review - A month by month narrative from the National Weather Service.
While Denver’s weather in 2010 was generally pretty quiet that isn’t to say there wasn’t something to talk about. Below is a month by month narrative from the National Weather Service for each month of the year.
JANUARY…ONLY A TOTAL OF 0.07 INCH OF LIQUID EQUIVALENT WAS COLLECTED DURING JANUARY 2010 WHICH CAME FROM MELTED SNOWFALL. THIS IS 0.44 INCH BELOW THE NORMAL OF 0.51 INCH. IT ALSO TIED 1961 AS THE 6TH DRIEST JANUARY SINCE DENVER RECORDS KEEPING BEGAN IN 1872. ONLY 2 DAYS RECORDED MEASURABLE MOISTURE WITH THE 6TH COLLECTING THE MOST IN A 24 HOUR PERIOD WITH ONLY 0.05 INCH. IN THE SNOWFALL DEPARTMENT WHERE MEASUREMENTS ARE TAKEN NEAR THE DENVER INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (DIA)… ONLY 2.6 INCHES OF THE WHITE STUFF WAS RECORDED. THIS AGAIN WAS BELOW THE JANUARY NORMAL OF 7.7 INCHES. FOR THE SEASON…THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT THE JULY THROUGH JANUARY’S SEASONAL TOTAL WAS 40.2 INCHES WHICH IS 6.9 INCHES ABOVE THE NORM OF 33.3 INCHES FOR THAT PERIOD OF TIME. 40.2 INCHES IS FAR BETTER THAN THE 2008-09 SEASONAL TOTAL THROUGH JANUARY OF A MERE 16.9 INCHES. THERE WERE NO PRECIPITATION RECORDS SET OR TIED DURING THE MONTH.
JANUARY 2010 TEMPERATURE STATISTICS TURNED OUT TO BE A NON-HEADLINE. THE MONTH FINISHED WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 30.4 DEGREES WHICH IS 1.2 DEGREES ABOVE THE 29.2 NORMAL. TEMPERATURES RANGED FROM A HIGH OF 58 DEGREES DOWN TO A LOW OF A NON-RECORD -16 DEGREES. IN FACT… THERE WERE NO TEMPERATURE RECORDS SET OR TIED DURING JANUARY 2010. ALL 31 DAYS HAD LOW TEMPERATURES AT OR BELOW FREEZING AND 3 DAYS HAD MINIMUM TEMPERATURES BELOW ZERO. TWO DAYS HAD HIGH MERCURY READINGS AT OR BELOW FREEZING. JANUARY 2009 SEEMED LIKE A COOL MONTH AS THERE WERE ONLY 7 READINGS THAT REACHED INTO THE FIFTIES. OBVIOUSLY THE REST OF THE MONTH ONLY SAW READINGS IN THE 40S OR BELOW.
THREE DAYS HAD DENSE FOG (VISIBILITY OF 1/4 MILE OR LESS) RECORDED AT DIA. LIGHT FOG WAS OBSERVED ON 8 DAYS. THE PEAK WIND DURING THE MONTH WAS A FAIRLY LIGHT GUST OF 35 MPH FROM A NORTHWESTERLY DIRECTION (310 DEGREES).
FEBRUARY…IT WAS A COOL FEBRUARY WITH THE MONTH FINISHING WITH A 29.1 DEGREE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WHICH WAS 4.1 DEGREES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 33.2 DEGREES. EVEN THOUGH IT WAS 4.1 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL…IT WAS STILL 3.9 DEGREES BELOW THE 10TH COLDEST FEBRUARY WHICH WAS 25.2 DEGREES ESTABLISHED IN 1905. THE COLDEST FEBRUARY OCCURRED IN 1954 WITH A VERY FRIGID 17.6 DEGREE AVERAGE. THE FEBRUARY AVERAGE OF 29.1 DEGREES WAS COLDER THAN THE JANUARY 2010 30.4 DEGREE AVERAGE. TEMPERATURES DURING FEBRUARY RANGED FROM A HIGH OF 52 DEGREES ON THE 27TH DOWN TO A LOW OF -1 DEGREE ON THE 9TH. ONLY 3 DAYS DURING THE MONTH REGISTERED HIGHS IN THE 50S. ALL 28 DAYS REGISTERED OVERNIGHT LOW TEMPERATURES AT OR BELOW FREEZING WITH 8 DAYS WHEN THE HIGH TEMPERATURE DID NOT REACH ABOVE 32 DEGREES. ONLY 1 LOW TEMPERATURE DIPPED BELOW ZERO.
PRECIPITATION WAS ALSO BELOW NORMAL. THE MONTH FINISHED WITH ONLY 0.30 INCH OF LIQUID WHICH WAS MEASURED FROM WATER EQUIVALENT OF SNOW. THIS EQUATED TO 0.19 INCH BELOW THE NORMAL OF 0.49 INCH. NINE DAYS RECORDED MEASURABLE MOISTURE BUT THERE WAS NO DAYS THAT ACCUMULATED .10 INCH OR MORE. THE MAXIMUM 24 HOUR LIQUID MEASUREMENT WAS 0.10 INCH BUT THAT COVERED 2 DAYS…THE 7TH AND 8TH. IN THE SNOWFALL DEPARTMENT…5.8 INCHES OF SNOWFALL WAS MEASURED AT THE AIRPORT. THIS WAS ONLY 0.5 INCH BELOW THE NORM OF 6.3 INCHES. THE 24 HOUR SNOWFALL MAXIMUM WAS 1.7 INCHES ON THE 20TH AND 21ST. THERE WERE NO PRECIPITATION OR SNOWFALL RECORDS SET OR TIED DURING THE MONTH. THE DRIEST FEBRUARY WAS 0.01 INCH COLLECTED IN 1970 AND THE WETTEST FEBRUARY WAS 2.01 INCHES IN 1934. THE MOST FEBRUARY SNOW OCCURRED IN 1912 WITH 22.1 INCHES WHILE THE LEAST AMOUNT OF FEBRUARY SNOWFALL WAS A TRACE WHICH OCCURRED JUST LAST YEAR…2009.
THE AVERAGE FEBRUARY WIND SPEED WAS 7.6 MILES PER HOUR WHILE THE PEAK GUST DURING THE MONTH WAS ONLY 35 MPH FROM A SOUTHWESTERLY DIRECTION (210 DEGREES).
