How Has the World Warmed Where You Live?

Last year was the warmest year in recorded history, scientists announced last week. That warming, however, hasn’t been uniform across the globe. Since the start of official record-keeping in 1880, the Earth’s poles have seen the greatest increase in average surface temperatures, while areas near the equator have seen a less dramatic change.

The map below from New Scientist shows how temperatures have changed over the last 120 years when compared against a 30-year baseline period — 1951 to 1980. Land-based temperature measurements (°C) were pulled from 6,000 monitoring stations scattered throughout the globe; ocean temperature readings were made by ships from 1880 to 1981, and using satellite measurements since 1982. The analysis was done by a team at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City.

Move the marker to track changes in surface temperature at different locations, or use the search field to find a specific city.