--- description: Last month was the hottest March since record keeping began, the eleventh such consecutive record title: Climate Change: March Breaks Warming Temperature Records image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8f32053ca0b6fef1/69888f550a4a2249f39c9430/record-warm-weather.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Science](/section/science/) ## Science Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [climate change](/tag/climate-change/) ## climate change Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # This March Was Hottest on Record by a Large Margin  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Apr 15, 2016 8:54 PM CUT  People enjoying the sun on Bournemouth beach, U.K., on Mar. 25, 2016. People enjoying the sun on Bournemouth beach, U.K., on Mar. 25, 2016.Andrew Matthews—PA Wire/Press Association Images/AP  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Apr 15, 2016 8:54 PM CUT Last month was the hottest March since record keeping began, the eleventh such consecutive record, according to reports released this week. Average global temperatures last month were 1.07 °C (1.9°F) above the average in March since 1891, according to [data](http://ds.data.jma.go.jp/tcc/tcc/products/gwp/temp/mar%5Fwld.html "undefined") from the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA). Separate [data released by NASA](http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/tabledata%5Fv3/GLB.Ts.txt "undefined") shows that March was 1.65°C (3.0°F) warmer than the average between 1951 and 1980\. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the primary keeper of such data in the U.S., will release its numbers next week. March may have also been the most above-average temperature month of all time, but preliminary agency data is inconsistent on that record. February of this year [broke that record](http://time.com/4261719/february-heat-records-climate-change/ "undefined") by a dramatic margin. The temperature record was likely driven by the ongoing, but now fading, [El Niño climate phenomenon](http://time.com/3996227/el-nino-forecast/ "undefined") that raises global temperatures and wrecks havoc on global weather patterns as well as ongoing climate change. Scientists [widely expect](http://time.com/4154331/warmest-year-2016-climate-change-el-nino/ "undefined") 2016 to be the hottest year on record. The string of records, and the scale at which they are being broken, are raising fears that the world is approaching the 2°C (3.6°F) level of warming above preindustrial levels that scientists say could bring about catastrophic and irreversible consequences. Keeping temperature rise below that threshold has been enshrined in the language of climate scientists and international agreements on climate change, including the [Paris Agreement](http://time.com/4146764/paris-agreement-climate-cop-21/ "undefined") reached last year. Recent temperature spikes underscore how difficult meeting that target may be. “If we continue to burn fossil fuels and increase the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, we will assume that this level of warmth will be perpetual,” said Michael Mann, professor of atmospheric science at Pennsylvania State University, [after last month’s record](http://time.com/4261719/february-heat-records-climate-change/ "undefined"). “This is a reminder that we need to need to decarbonize.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4296481/march-record-temperatures/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4296481/march-record-temperatures/"},"headline":"This March Was Hottest on Record by a Large Margin","datePublished":"2016-04-15T20:54:13.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T16:48:07.574Z","description":"It was the 11th month in row to be the hottest such month on record","url":"https://time.com/4296481/march-record-temperatures/","keywords":["climate change"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8f32053ca0b6fef1/69888f550a4a2249f39c9430/record-warm-weather.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Justin Worland","jobTitle":"Senior Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/justin-worland/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8f32053ca0b6fef1/69888f550a4a2249f39c9430/record-warm-weather.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Spring weather Mar 25th 2016. 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