2020: It was the warmest year on record for the planet, and for Maine

SUN JOURNAL • February 21, 2021

2020 was southern Maine’s (Portland) warmest year on record. The average temperature was 49.4 degrees; 2.9 degrees above normal. Portland also reported the all-time warmest summer ever recorded, and the warmest July on record. And that record was broken despite the city experiencing its coolest July 4 in 22 years. This year’s findings should come as no surprise. Our planet’s global average surface temperature in 2020 tied with 2016 as the warmest year on record, according to an analysis by NASA.