World Meteorological Organization

Author: World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

The weather and climate of 2016 were extraordinary. During the year, many new regional and global records were observed. After the 2015 record warming of one degree Celsius compared with pre-industrial levels, 2016 saw the global average temperature rise exceed 1.1 degrees. Severe droughts and floods affected many regions of the world, in part due to the 2015/2016 El Niño. Devastating tropical storms struck both the Caribbean and the Pacific, including Hurricane Matthew, which caused widespread loss of life in Haiti.