Weather of 2013

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Land and ocean temperature values in February 2013 compared to a 1981–2010 base period.

Differences of land precipitation percentiles in February 2013 from average values.

The 2013 extreme weather events included several all-time temperature records in Northern and Southern Hemisphere. The February extent of snow cover in Eurasia and North America was above average, while the extent of Arctic ice in the same month was 4.5% below the 1981–2010 average.^[1] The Northern Hemisphere weather extremes have been linked to the melting of Arctic sea ice, which alters atmospheric circulation in a way that leads to more snow and ice.^[2]

By January 11, 233 weather-related deaths were reported in India.^[3] Elsewhere, particularly in Russia, the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom, low temperatures affected wildlife, delaying bird breeding and disrupting the bird migration. On January 10 Bangladesh faced the lowest temperature since country's independence, at 3.0 °C (37.4 °F) in Saidpur.^[4] While Finland and most of Northern European countries got the record high, and even the highest temperatures at Europe during May and June, Western and Middle Europe faced much cooler weather and even their wettest May and June ever. During summer prolonged heat waves in the Northern Hemisphere set new record high temperatures.

On March 24, 2014, the secretary-general of the World Meteorological Organization Michel Jarraud announced that "many of the extreme events of 2013 were consistent with what we would expect as a result of human-induced climate change".^[5]