Support The Moscow Times!

2020 Was Warmest Year in Russia’s History – Weather Service

Russia's 130-year record comes amid record global temperatures as climate change continues to warm the planet. Kirill Zykov / Moskva News Agency

Last year was the warmest in Russia’s recorded history, the national weather service said this month as global temperatures reached record highs.

Russia’s weather service said 2020 was among the country's 14 hottest years, all of which were recorded in the 21st century. Average temperatures across the country’s 11 time zones were 2 degrees Celsius or more above normal, Russia’s Meteorological Service announced on Jan. 6. 

The highest anomaly of 7 C above normal was observed on Siberia’s Taymyr peninsula, the northernmost part of the Asian continent, it said. Temperatures in European and Asian Russia were around 3 degrees above normal.

“An absolute maximum has been reached for the first time in the entire 130-year history of regular weather observations in every federal district of the country, with the exception of the North Caucasus,” the Meteorological Service said.

The Urals and Siberian federal districts beat previous temperature records by 1.5 C, while Moscow’s record average of 8 C in 2020 was also 3 degrees above normal.

The world as a whole saw average temperatures of 14.9 C in 2020, rivaling a record set in 2016 and closing what the UN called the warmest decade ever recorded.

Russia, the world’s fourth-largest greenhouse gas emitter with an economy heavily dependent on oil and gas, is warming more than twice as fast as the rest of the world due to its vast Arctic territories.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more