Yale Climate Connections
February 2026 was the world’s fifth-warmest February in analyses of global weather data going back to 1850, NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, or NCEI, reported March 11. The European Copernicus Climate Change Service also rated February 2026 as the fifth-warmest February on record, while NASA had it tied for fourth-warmest. The global-average temperature for December 2025 to February 2026 was the fifth-highest on record.
Global land areas had their sixth-warmest February on record in 2026, while global oceans had their second-warmest February, falling just 0.16 degrees Celsius (0.29°F) shy of the record set in 2024, NOAA said. Africa had its second-warmest February, and South America and Asia experienced their seventh- and eighth-warmest February, respectively. While North America, Europe, Oceania, the Arctic, and the Antarctic all experienced above-average February temperatures, none ranked among the top 10.
Snow cover in February was well below average over the Western U.S. and much of Asia and Europe. Overall, Northern Hemisphere snow cover during February 2026 was the third-lowest since records began in 1967.
Remember all that snow that fell from the Carolinas to Boston? I bet you assume this has been quite a snow season overall. Well, for the Lower 48, this is the least snowy season (through February) for any year since at least 1940-41 when looking at all years through February. Thanks humans!
