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 NOAA 98-15


 CONTACT:  Patricia Viets, NOAA             FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
           Stephanie Kenitzer, NOAA         3/9/98

       JANUARY AND FEBRUARY WARMEST AND WETTEST ON RECORD, NOAA REPORTS

 The first two months of 1998 were the warmest and wettest in the 104-year
 record of temperatures and precipitation measurements for the contiguous 48
 states, according to preliminary data compiled by the Commerce Department's
 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

 "During the period January-February the national average temperature was 37.5
 degrees Fahrenheit compared with a normal of 32.1. The previous record was
 37.0 in 1990. For precipitation, 6.01 inches fell, compared with a normal of
 4.05. The previous record was 5.7 inches in 1979," said William Brown of
 NOAA's National Climatic Data Center.

 For the winter (December-February) as a whole, however, temperatures and
 precipitation were not as extreme. This past winter was the second warmest on
 record and the seventh wettest. The normal national average temperature for
 the winter months of December, January and February is 32.3 degrees F. This
 year's figure is 36.4 degrees F. The record is 36.6 set in 1991-1992. For the
 three-month period, the normal precipitation value for the country is 6.35
 inches. This year's figure is 7.96 inches, compared with 8.5 inches in 1932.

 NOAA reports that California and North Dakota had their wettest February on
 record. Florida, Maryland, Nevada, Rhode Island and Virginia had their second
 wettest February since 1895. The warmest February on record took place in much
 of the upper Midwest and parts of the East, including Minnesota, Wisconsin,
 Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Connecticut.

 "These are the patterns one would typically expect during a strong El Nino
 event," said Ants Leetmaa, director of NOAA's Climate Prediction Center in
 Camp Springs, Md. "With the newest figures, the long-term trend of increasing
 temperatures and precipitation in the United States continues," said Tom Karl,
 senior scientist at NOAA's National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C.
 "These record-breaking statistics are generally consistent with both a strong
 El Nino and climate model projections of a continuing trend toward a warmer
 and wetter world as greenhouse gases continue to increase."

 The temperature and precipitation patterns that have dominated much of the
 winter months are expected to continue through March and April, according to
 NOAA's climate predictions. In the summer, at least slightly warmer than
 normal conditions are expected across Southern California, the southwest and
 much of the East Coast. There are no strong indications for either above or
 below normal precipitation across the country. El Nino conditions in the
 tropical Pacific will gradually diminish through the summer. Ocean
 temperatures in this region are predicted to be near normal later in the year.

 The next monthly El Nino advisory from the Climate Prediction Center will be
 available on Tuesday, March 10, on the Internet at http://nic.fb4.noaa.gov.
 Click on El Nino.

                                      ###
 Editors' Notes:

 Statistics about the past months, compiled by NOAA's National Climatic Data
 Center, are available on the center's World Wide Web site at:
 http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov . Click onto
 http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/ol/climate/warmest.html for "What's Hot."

 A map of individual state rankings is available on the World Wide Web from
 NOAA's Climate Prediction Center:

 February PrecipitationRankings
 http://nic.fb4.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/regional_monitoring
 /1mpranks.gif

 February Temperatures Rankings
 http://nic.fb4.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/regional_monitoring/1mtran
 k s.gif

 Dec - Feb Historical Precipitation Rankings
 http://nic.fb4.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/regional_monitoring/3mpran
 k s.gif

 Dec - Feb. Historical Temperature Rankings
 http://nic.fb4.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/regional_monitoring/3mtran
 k s.gif