The United States experienced the warmest year on record in 2012, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said Tuesday. According to NOAA, the average temperature in the contiguous United States last year was 13 degrees Celsius, which was -16 degrees Celsius above the twentieth century average and -17 degrees Celsius above the previous record from 1998. "The year consisted of the fourth warmest winter, a record warm spring, the second warmest summer, and a warmer-than-average autumn," NOAA said in a news release. The agency said that the average precipitation total for the contiguous United States in 2012 was 68 centimeters, 6.5 centimeters below average and the fifteenth driest year on record. "The U.S. Climate Extremes Index indicated that 2012 was the second most extreme year on record for the nation. The index, which evaluates extremes in temperature and precipitation, as well as land falling tropical cyclones, was nearly twice the average value and second only to 1998," NOAA said.
