Above-average temperatures cover much of the globe; lowest sea ice extent
March Highlights:
- Temperatures were above average over much of the globe, particularly in the Arctic, but much below average over central Canada and eastern Asia.
- Global sea ice extent ranked second lowest on record for March; Arctic sea ice extent was lowest on record.
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Eight named storms occurred across the globe in March, which was slightly above average.
Map of global selected significant climate anomalies and events in March 2025.
Temperature
The March global surface temperature was 2.36°F (1.31°C) above the 20th-century average of 54.9°F (12.7°C), making it the third-warmest March on record. According to NCEI’s Global Annual Temperature Outlook, there is a 6% chance that 2025 will rank as the warmest year on record.
It was the second-warmest March for the global land air temperature and the second-warmest March for the global ocean surface temperature. Europe and Oceania had their warmest Marches on record, and Africa ranked third warmest.
March temperatures were above average across much of the global land surface, particularly over the Arctic, Alaska, the eastern U.S., most of Europe, northwest Africa, and Australia. Much of central Canada and eastern Asia were much colder than average, and a few other areas such as southern Africa were slightly below normal. Sea surface temperatures were above average over most areas, while parts of the eastern tropical Pacific and parts of the Southern Ocean were below average.
Snow Cover
The Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent in March was well below average, ranking seventh smallest on record. Snow cover over North America and Greenland was below average (by 170,000 square miles), and Eurasia was also below average (by 550,000 square miles). A lack of snow cover was particularly obvious over the United States and Europe.
Sea Ice
Global sea ice extent was the second smallest in the 47-year record at 6.60 million square miles, which was 780,000 square miles below the 1991–2020 average. Arctic sea ice extent was below average (by 340,000 square miles), ranking lowest on record and Antarctic extent was below average (by 440,000 square miles), ranking fourth lowest on record.
Tropical Cyclones
Eight named storms occurred across the globe in March, which was slightly above the long-term average of six. A record five named storms occurred in the southwestern Indian Ocean while four occurred in the Australian region (one storm traversed the two basins).
For a more complete summary of climate conditions and events, see our March 2025 Global Climate Report or explore our Climate at a Glance Global Time Series.
