Greenland’s west coast recorded its warmest ever January, with the capital Nuuk beating a 109-year-old record as temperatures soared across the Arctic region.
NUUK: Greenland’s capital registered its warmest January on record, shattering a mark that had stood for 109 years as temperatures soared across the island’s vast west coast.
The Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) said Nuuk posted an average monthly temperature of 0.1°C, a staggering 7.8°C above the 30-year average for January.
This reading was 1.4 degrees above the previous record set in 1917.
On its warmest day last month, the mercury in Nuuk climbed to a balmy 11.3°C. The record warmth extended over 2,000 kilometres along Greenland’s west coast, with multiple locations setting new monthly highs.
In Ilulissat in Disko Bay, the January average was -1.6°C, which was 1.3 degrees warmer than the previous 1929 record and 11 degrees above the normal for the month.
DMI climate researcher Martin Olesen said such an extended heat record across a large area is a clear sign of change.
“We know and can clearly see that global warming is well underway,” Olesen said.
He noted this leads to more records at the warm end of the temperature scale and gradually fewer at the low end.
The Arctic is on the frontline of climate change, heating up four times faster than the rest of the planet since 1979 according to a 2022 study.
This occurred while Europe and North America experienced a severe cold snap in January.
