Warmest Year On Record

  • Released Tuesday, January 20, 2015
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The year 2014 ranks as Earth’s warmest since 1880.

The year 2014 ranks as Earth’s warmest since 1880.

Earth is getting warmer, and global temperatures observed in 2014 are an example of just that. An analysis of surface temperature measurements by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies reveals 2014 was the warmest year on record. Since 1880, the start of the modern meteorological era, Earth’s average surface temperature has warmed by about 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit (0.8 degrees Celsius). The majority of that warming has occurred in the past three decades, largely driven by the increase in carbon dioxide and other human emissions into the planet’s atmosphere. With the exception of 1998, the 10 warmest years have now taken place since 2000. Watch the video to see how global temperatures have changed from 1880 through 2014.

This visualization shows a time series of five-year global temperature averages, mapped from 1880 to 2014.

The year 1951 marks the beginning of a 30-year baseline from which global temperatures are compared.

The year 1951 marks the beginning of a 30-year baseline from which global temperatures are compared.

The long-term trend in rising global temperatures became especially clear in the early 1980s.

The long-term trend in rising global temperatures became especially clear in the early 1980s.

Temperatures observed since 2010 continue the warming trend seen in past decades.

Temperatures observed since 2010 continue the warming trend seen in past decades.

For More Information

See NASA.gov

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NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio

This page was originally published on Tuesday, January 20, 2015.
This page was last updated on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 1:50 PM EDT.