If you listened to the news over the holiday, you might have learned that it was not just exceptionally warm across much of the United States, but Monday was the hottest day in history. Or at least, the hottest day around the globe since temperature records have been maintained.
It was the first day in recorded history that the world had ever averaged over 17 degrees Celsius. That’s just 62.62 degrees Fahrenheit. It might not seem like all that much, but keep in mind that for half the world, this is mid-winter. Also, the world includes Greenland, Antarctica, and some similarly chilly places. To reach a 17.01°C average means that a great deal of the planet was just exceptionally toasty.
The new record beats a previous peak of 16.92°C that had stood since August 2016. However, the new record didn’t stand nearly so long, because the average temperature on Tuesday was 17.18°C. That means Monday was the hottest day in history. Then Tuesday was the hottest day in history.
And we’re still weeks away from the usual hottest days of the year.