Weather & Science
February Was Third Hottest on Record Even Without El Niño Effect
For the first time since June 2023, last month was not the warmest or second warmest ever recorded. But temperatures were still unusually high.
A runner passes the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia, on Feb. 23, 2025.
Photographer: Brent Lewin/BloombergGlobal temperatures in February were the third hottest on record — 1.59C above the pre-industrial average, according to Zeke Hausfather, a climate researcher who calculated the result using data from the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.
Last month was the first month since June 2023 that didn’t finish first or second on the all-time-warmest chart. But it was still anomalously hot.