Climate change

Report: US Sees Hottest March in 132 Years of Records

Was March 2026's record heat a human-caused climate crisis or just natural weather cycles at work?

Published APR 10

Report: US Sees Hottest March in 132 Years of Records

Story

Above: A person walks along The Strand in Redondo Beach, California, during a heat wave on March 20, 2026. Image credit: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/Getty Images

The Facts

March 2026 recorded an average temperature of 50.85°F across the contiguous U.S. — 9.35°F above the 20th-century average — making it the warmest March in 132 years of records, according to records released on Wednesday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
NOAA
Breitbart
The departure from average in March 2026 was the largest recorded for any calendar month in the contiguous U.S., surpassing the previous record of 8.9°F above normal set in March 2012. Six of the nation's top 10 most abnormally hot months have occurred in the last 10 years.
Yale Climate Connections
Newsmax
More than 19,800 daily heat records were broken across the country in March, with over 2,000 locations setting monthly heat records. The April 2025 to March 2026 span was the warmest 12-month period on record for the contiguous U.S.
FOX 13 News Utah
Guardian
Ten states — Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and Wyoming — recorded their warmest March on record, with average temperatures in each exceeding their respective April averages.
NOAA
Accuweather
The January through March 2026 period was the driest on record for the contiguous U.S., with a national average of 4.79 inches of precipitation — below the previous record low of 5.27 inches set in 1910. Nearly 60% of the contiguous U.S. was in drought by month's end.
NOAA
Yale Climate Connections
USA Today
Both NOAA and the European climate service Copernicus are forecasting a strong El Niño to develop within months, potentially exceeding 2°C. Northern Illinois University professor Victor Gensini said it "could plausibly push global temperatures to new record levels in late 2026 and into 2027."
FOX 13 News Utah
Guardian

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The Spin

Climate-concerned narrative

March 2026 wasn't just a hot month — it was a climate alarm bell, shattering 132 years of U.S. records with temperatures 9.35°F above the 20th-century average. Human-caused warming made extreme heat five times more likely across nearly a third of the Lower 48 on a single day, and that's not a coincidence. Fossil fuel dependence is delivering nonsurvivable conditions right now, and governments refusing to act are making it worse.

Shel Winkley on X

Common Dreams

Climate-skeptic narrative

Record March temps look alarming until you factor in that a major El Niño is forming — a natural ocean cycle that redistributes existing heat, just like it did in 1998, 2016 and 2023. Natural variability, high-pressure ridging and ENSO cycles still drive short-term temperature extremes far more than a trace gas at 0.04% of the atmosphere. Calling this a climate emergency ignores the physics of how Earth's heat system actually works.

Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki on X