June 2019 hottest in 140 years of record-keeping; sea ice levels also shrinking

Last month was the hottest June ever documented in 140 years of record-keeping, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported.

The average global temperature was 1.71 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th-century average of 59.9 degrees, according to NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information.

Agency officials said nine of the 10 hottest Junes have occurred since 2010 and last month was also the 43rd consecutive June and 414th consecutive month with above-average global temperatures.
A heat wave gripped most of Europe late last month, sparking a massive wildfire in Spain and breaking record temperatures in France.

The mercury topped 104 degrees Fahrenheit in most of Western Europe, with a sizzling 114.6 degrees in southern France shattering previous high temperatures.

The temperatures between January and June 2019, at 1.71 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th-century average of 56.3 degrees, tied with the same period in 2017 as the second-hottest year on record.

It was the hottest first half of the year for Alaska, western Canada, Mexico, South America, the Atlantic and Indian oceans and other areas.

The heat is also having an impact on sea ice, with the Antarctic hitting a new low for ice coverage for June for the second month in a row, NOAA scientists said.

The average Antarctic sea ice levels were 8.5% below 1981 to 2010 averages. Sea ice in the Arctic was 10.5% below average with the second smallest coverage on record for June.