Find out why July 2023 was a record breaking

July 2023 was the hottest month on record, according to NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The average global temperature for the month was 1.61 degrees Fahrenheit (0.9 degrees Celsius) above the 20th century average, breaking the previous record set in July 2019.

There were a number of factors that contributed to the record-breaking heat in July 2023. One was the La Niña climate pattern, which is associated with warmer than average temperatures in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. La Niña also tends to suppress tropical storms in the Atlantic Ocean, which can lead to more heat building up in the atmosphere.