Scientists who study the Arctic region consider this area to be an early indicator of global warming, because changes in this area are amplified by the high albedo of the snow and ice. This animation depicts the 28-year surface temperature trend over the Arctic region determined from data collected between August 1981 and July 2009. The warming and cooling regions are shown in steps of .02 degrees Kelvin per year from the regions of greatest change to the areas of least change. Blue hues indicate cooling regions; red hues depict warming. The neutral region of -.02 to +.02 is shown in white. Light regions indicate less change while darker regions indicate more. The temperature scale used ranges from -0.42 to +0.42 degrees Kelvin, although the minimum data value is -0.1825 degrees Kelvin per year while the maximum value is 0.4185. ||

The Earth is a complex system with a unique climate. Many scientists are concerned that Earth's climate is changing at an unprecedented rate. Each January, scientists at NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies release temperature data for the previous year. How do scientists study how warm our home planet is, and how do they determine what factors affect its climate? This short video explores the tools NASA scientists use to take Earth's temperature.For complete transcript, click here. || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009_640x480.00652_print.jpg (1024x768) [99.0 KB] || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009_640x480_web.png (320x240) [281.6 KB] || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009_640x480_thm.png (80x40) [16.1 KB] || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009_640x480_searchweb.png (320x180) [85.4 KB] || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009_1280x720_H264.webmhd.webm (960x540) [46.7 MB] || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009_640x480.mpg (640x480) [126.9 MB] || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009_1280x720_H264.mov (720x486) [158.2 MB] || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009_640x480_ipod.m4v (640x480) [46.7 MB] || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009320x240.mp4 (320x240) [18.7 MB] || Taking_Earths_Temperature_Updated_2009.wmv (346x260) [35.6 MB] ||

Reporters package style video about the new 2009 global temperature data. Scientists at the Goddard Institute for Space Science found that 2009 was tied as the second hottest year ever recorded.For complete transcript, click here. || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-H.264_for_iPod_video_and_iPhone_640x480.00302_print.jpg (1024x576) [104.3 KB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-H.264_for_iPod_video_and_iPhone_640x480_web.png (320x180) [104.3 KB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-H.264_for_iPod_video_and_iPhone_640x480_thm.png (80x40) [12.0 KB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-H.264_for_Apple_TV.webmhd.webm (960x540) [37.9 MB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009_1280x720_ProRes.mov (1280x720) [2.6 GB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-H.264_1280x720_@30fps.mov (1280x720) [85.5 MB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-720_H.264_QT_for_16x9_Youtube.mov (1280x720) [37.9 MB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-H.264_for_Apple_TV.m4v (960x720) [92.0 MB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-H.264_for_iPod_video_and_iPhone_640x480.m4v (640x360) [27.3 MB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-MPEG1_512x288.mpg (512x288) [23.2 MB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009-H.264_for_iPod_video_and_iPhone_320x240_QVGA.m4v (320x180) [10.8 MB] || G2010-004_Global_Temp_2009_WMVHQ_346x260_16_9.wmv (346x260) [25.2 MB] ||

Canned Interviews and B-roll for Arctic Sea Ice 2014 live shot campaign. ||

The year 2014 now ranks as the warmest on record since 1880, according to an analysis by NASA scientists.Nine of the 10 warmest years since modern records began have now occurred since 2000, according to a global temperature analysis by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York.2014’s record-breaking warmth continues a long-term trend of a warming climate. The global average temperature has increased about 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit (0.8 degrees Celsius) since 1880, with most of that warming occurring during the last three to four decades.The warming trend is largely driven by the increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, caused by human emissions. ||

Earth’s global surface temperatures in 2017 were the second warmest since modern recordkeeping began in 1880, continuing the planet’s long-term warming trend.Globally averaged temperatures in 2017 were 1.62 degrees Fahrenheit (0.90 degrees Celsius) warmer than the 1951 to 1980 mean. That is second only to global temperatures in 2016. Last year was the third consecutive year in which temperatures were more than 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit (1 degree Celsius) above late nineteenth-century levels.2017 was the warmest year that did not have an El Niño event.NASA’s temperature analyses incorporate surface temperature measurements from 6,300 weather stations, ship- and buoy-based observations of sea surface temperatures, and temperature measurements from Antarctic research stations.These raw measurements are analyzed using an algorithm that considers the varied spacing of temperature stations around the globe and urban heating effects that could skew the conclusions. These calculations produce the global average temperature deviations from the baseline period of 1951 to 1980.The full 2017 surface temperature data set and the complete methodology used to make the temperature calculation are available at: http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/ ||

This visualization shows Aqua/AIRS simulated volumetric temperature data for September 13, 1999. The data was created using the Finite Volume Community Climate Model (FVCCM). Temperature and cloud data sets were match rendered for cross dissolves in post production. This visualization was created as a part of the Aqua prelaunch package. ||

This visualization shows Aqua/AIRS simulated volumetric cloud data for September 13, 1999. The data was created using the Finite Volume Community Climate Model (FVCCM). Temperature and cloud data sets were match rendered for cross dissolves in post production. This visualization was created as a part of the Aqua prelaunch package. ||

The Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) measures the chemistry of the lower stratosphere and upper troposphere. It also measures the temperature. ||

The ice sheet melt extent is a daily (or every-other-day, prior to August, 1987) estimate of the spatial extent of wet snow on the Greenland ice sheet derived from passive microwave satellite brightness temperature characteristics. This indicator of melt on each area of the ice sheet for each day of observation is physically based on the changes in microwave emission characteristics observable in data. Although it is not a direct measure of the snow wetness, it is representative of the amount of ice loss due to seasonal melting that occurs on the Greenland ice sheet.This animation shows the regions of the Greenland ice sheet over which melt occurred more than three days between May 1st and September 30th for each year. ||