GENEVA — The year 2003, marked by a sweltering summer and drought across large swaths of the planet, was the third hottest in nearly 150 years, the United Nations weather agency said Tuesday.
The World Meteorological Organization estimated the average surface temperature for the year to be 0.81 degrees Fahrenheit higher than the normal 25.2 degrees. The agency said that warmer weather could not be attributed to any one cause but was part of a trend that global warming was likely to prolong.
The agency, which collects data from forecasters worldwide, said the three hottest years since accurate records began to be kept in 1861 have all been in the past six years.
The hottest was 1998, when the average temperature was up 0.99 degrees.
"The rhythm of temperature increases is accelerating," said WMO deputy secretary-general Michel Jarraud.
This summer, much of Europe was struck by a prolonged heat wave, with temperatures exceeding 104 degrees. The hot weather was blamed for the deaths of thousands, most in France, and devastating forest fires in several countries. It also accelerated the melting of Alpine glaciers.
India and Pakistan also were hit by a deadly heat wave in May and June, when 1,500 people died as temperatures soared above 122 degrees Fahrenheit. The western United States continued to suffer from drought, and wildfires in California burned nearly 75,000 acres in October.
In the southern hemisphere springtime, Australia logged a record September temperature of over 109 degrees.
Over the 2002-03 winter, North America received its 10th lowest recorded snowfall.