(from chinadaily.com.cn)
The US sweltered under its hottest year on record in 2012, breaking the previous yearly average by 0.6C (1F), the US government has said.Last year the average US temperature was 13C (55.3F) amid widespread drought and a mild winter.
A widespread drought lasted several months and hit almost two-thirds of the country
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The US sweltered under its hottest year on record in 2012, breaking the previous yearly average by 0.6C (1F), the US government has said.
Last year the average US temperature was 13C (55.3F) amid widespread drought and a mild winter.
Scientists said the heat was caused both by global warming and by natural weather variation.
But they said the size of the increase over the previous record year, 1998, was unprecedented. |
"These records do not occur like this in an unchanging climate," Kevin Trenberth, head of climate analysis at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, said. "And they are costing many billions of dollars."
The governor of Illinois examines the ravages of the drought
In 2012, 11 weather-related disasters caused at least $1bn (￡623m) in damage, including "superstorm" Sandy and a months-long drought that hit almost two-thirds of the country, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The drought - the worst in the US since the 1950s - contributed to higher temperatures. Without enough moisture in the soil to evaporate into rainfall, air becomes hotter and dryer.
US temperature records go back to 1895 and are now based on reports from more than 1,200 weather stations across the contiguous 48 states.
Last year was 1.7C (3.2F) warmer than the average for the entire 20th Century, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said. July broke the record for hottest month.
Nineteen states set yearly heat records in 2012. Alaska, however, was cooler than average.
Chinese Translation
气候变化是2012年美国创历史高温的原因之一
图:美国大面积干旱持续数月，几乎2/3的国土面积受影响。
美国政府称，2012年是美国历史上最酷热的一年，平均气温比往年高出0.6摄氏度。
2012年美国出现大范围干旱，并且冬季偏暖，全年平均气温为13摄氏度。
科学家称，美国的热浪受全球变暖和自然气候变化的双重影响。
但他们认为，2012年与1998年的历史最高记录相比，气温上升幅度是空前的。
“这些温度最高记录并不会在气候不发生变化的情况下出现，”美国国家气候研究所的气候分析负责人Kevin Trenberth说道。“同时，它们还造成了几十亿美元的损失。”
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据美国国家海洋和气候管理局（ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,NOAA)）的数据，在2012年，11起与天气相关的自然灾害造成至少10亿美元的损失，其中包括“超级风暴”桑迪（Sandy）和在全美三分之二国土遭受遭受长达数月的干旱。
这干旱是20世纪50年代以来最为严重的一次，并让温度上升得更高。由于土壤中没有足够的湿气蒸发到空气中，空气变得更为热和更为干燥。
美国上历史最高的气温的年份是在1895年，而现在，根据48个旅店的1200个天气观察站的报告，现在已经达到了历史最高。
全国海洋和气候管理局称，2012年比整个20世纪的平均温度高了1.7摄氏度。在七月打破记录，成为史上温度最高的月份。 |
2012年，美国的19个州都创下年度历史最高温度的纪录，不过，阿拉斯加却比往年更冷。
