Scientists: Arctic temps hit 100 degrees in 2020

On June 20, 2020, the temperature in the Siberian town of Verkhoyansk soared to a searing 100.4 degrees more befitting of the Mediterranean than far east Russia. Scientists with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) have now confirmed the measurement is the Arctic’s hottest temperature on record.

“This new Arctic record is one of a series of observations reported to the WMO Archive of Weather and Climate Extremes that sound the alarm bells about our changing climate,” said WMO Secretary General Petteri Taalas in a statement.

2020 was a record-breaking year across the globe, ranking in the top three warmest years on record. The Arctic, which has been warming more than twice as fast as the global average, experienced its hottest January to June period ever that year. During those six months, monthly temperatures in Siberia were as high as 18.5 degrees Fahrenheit above average.

The warm temperatures helped fuel a large number of wildfires in the region. Around half of the fires burned through areas with thawed peat soil - decomposed organic matter abundant in carbon. Fires on peatlands can release large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. In June and July, fires in Arctic Russia released more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than any entire previous fire season since records began.