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The peak flowering of cherry trees in Kyoto, Japan, has been recorded since the ninth century. Yasuyuki Aono and colleagues from the Osaka Prefecture University collated this data from historical diaries and chronicles, indicating the dates on which cherry blossom viewing parties had been held or other observations of peak blossom.

In 2025, the peak cherry blossom happened on April 4th.

This long-run data is a proxy measure for how the climate has changed. The onset of cherry blossoms is linked with warmer temperatures. Since the early 20th century, the combined effects of urbanization and higher temperatures due to climate change have gradually moved the peak blossom earlier in the year.

Explore this data in our interactive visualization →

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The world is heating up. By the 2010s, the global average temperature of the air above the surface was about 1°C higher than in the 1940s. But some regions are warming much faster.

The chart shows how average surface air temperatures have changed each decade across continents and oceans compared to historical averages.

The Arctic warmed more than any other region — by the 2010s, it was 2.8°C hotter than in the 1940s.

In the Arctic, melting sea ice has amplified this temperature increase: ice reflects sunlight, so having less of it leads to more warming.

Europe was in second. Since land heats up faster than water, its mostly land-based geography has increased its rate of warming. It has also seen a rapid reduction in aerosols from air pollution. These improvements in air quality can inadvertently increase temperatures because there are fewer aerosols to reflect sunlight.

You can explore how temperatures in each continent, ocean, and country have changed over time →

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January 2025 was the hottest January on record. This was surprising because the world recently transitioned from El Niño (which tends to increase global temperatures) to La Niña (which tends to cool them). We might have expected this cooling to be reflected in January’s temperatures. It was not.

But February did not follow this same pattern.

The chart tracks monthly temperature anomalies, comparing current temperatures to historical averages. Each dot represents a February anomaly, with El Niño (warmer) years in orange and red and La Niña (cooler) years in blue.

As expected, February 2025 cooled compared to February 2024, following the usual pattern where La Niña years tend to be cooler than the El Niño years before them.

However, this doesn’t mean global warming has slowed. Recent La Niña years are still warmer than El Niño years from just a few decades ago, showing that even natural climate fluctuations don’t reverse the long-term warming trend.

We update this data monthly so you can track how these patterns evolve.

Read our recent article that explains in more detail how the world is warming despite natural fluctuations from the El Niño cycle →

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In some countries such as Japan, the United States, or South Korea, almost all households have air conditioning in their homes. In others, almost none do. This includes countries like India or South Africa where extreme heat is frequent.

In this chart, you can see the share of households that had air conditioning (AC) in 2018. This data comes from the International Energy Agency.

Paying for the upfront cost of an AC unit is a key barrier to adoption, so as incomes rise, more people get access to them.

Access to air conditioning is becoming increasingly important as the world warms and extreme heat becomes more common.

Read more about how populations can protect themselves against extreme heat →

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There are two key drivers of sea level rise. First, water expands as it gets warmer. Second, ice on land — in the form of ice sheets and glaciers — melts and adds water to ocean basins.

Both of these processes have accelerated due to climate change. The effect is shown in the chart, based on data from the US’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It combines two sources: recent data from the University of Hawaii Sea Level Center and a publication from Church and White (2011).

On this chart, the rise in sea level is measured relative to the average from 1993 to 2008. Levels had risen by almost 20 centimeters between 1880 and this period, and 5 more centimeters since. Combined, that’s around 25 centimeters.

Explore more data on the impacts of climate change →

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This chart shows average temperatures in the 1940s and 2010s compared to the average from 1991-2020. These differences — called temperature anomalies — help us see how temperatures have changed. We source this data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) ERA5 project.

Globally, the 1940s were 0.66°C cooler than the 1991-2020 average, while the 2010s were 0.2°C warmer. This means that over about 70 years, the global average temperature increased by approximately 0.86°C. Compared to pre-industrial times, the current global average temperature is estimated to have risen by approximately 1.3°C.

Ireland is the only country where temperatures in the 1940s were similar to the 2010s.

Every other country has seen temperatures increase over this period, with some experiencing more than several degrees of warming.

This illustrates how local climate variations can differ from global trends. The effects can vary from place to place, but global warming remains a broad phenomenon.

Explore decadal temperature anomalies in other countries →

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Some regions are warming faster than others, and countries in the Eastern Mediterranean region have seen some of the most rapid warming.

We observe this through temperature anomalies. Anomalies compare current temperatures to historical averages, showing us shifts over time. In the chart, each bar represents the temperature anomaly for a given year.

In 2023, the global average temperature anomaly was 0.6°C above the 1991–2020 average. However, these anomalies vary by region. In countries such as Syria and Turkey, the average annual surface air temperature in 2023 was around 1.2°C above the 1991–2020 average, compared to approximately 0.3°C in Australia.

This pattern is not a one-off difference; it is also reflected in the decadal temperatures. This data comes from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) ERA5 project.

We update this data every month: you can track monthly temperature changes across the globe and at the national level on our site.

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The world is getting hotter as a result of climate change, with some countries warming faster than others. But within countries, warming is not equal across the year.

In the United States, winters have warmed faster than any other season. This is followed by spring, with summer and fall showing the slowest rates.

The chart below shows the temperature anomaly — the change in seasonal temperature compared to the average over the 20th century (1901 to 2000). This data is collected and published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

American winters have warmed by nearly 3 degrees Fahrenheit (°F), compared to 1.5°F to 2°F in other seasons.

Minimum temperatures have increased faster than maximum temperatures. That means nighttime temperatures have increased more than daytime temperatures.

Explore the data →

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February this year marked the ninth consecutive month of record-breaking global temperatures.

We see this from monthly temperature anomalies. Anomalies compare current temperatures to historical averages, showing us shifts over time.

In the chart, each line represents the temperature anomaly in a given year. As you can see, the line for 2023 was markedly above every other year on the chart from June onward. And the first two months of 2024, visible in the top left corner, have also set new records.

In February, the global surface air temperature was 0.81°C above the 1991–2020 average for the same month.

Explore this data →