Record Warmest 12 Months in U.S.;Odds of Occurrence Less than 2 in Million

As previously reported here, only 4 weeks out of the last 52 ending in May were colder than average in the U.S. The National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) has now reported that the 12 months from June 2011-May 2012 were the record warmest of any 12-month period in U.S. climate history, surpassing by a wide margin the year ending in April. Three of the top 5 warmest 12-month intervals have now ended in each of the last 3 months.

The NCDC further reports that "each of the 12 months ranked among the warmest third of their historical distribution for the first time in the 1895-present record. The odds of this occurring randomly is 1 in 531,441."