Hottest decade in Hong Kong

9 December 2009

The World Meteorological Organization has just announced that 2009 will likely rank among the top 10 hottest years on record.

In Hong Kong, the average temperature recorded at the Hong Kong Observatory from January to November 2009 was 24.1 degrees, the fifth highest for the same period since records began in 1884. Among the warmest years (January to November) on record, six occurred in this century (see table below).

Due to global warming and local urbanisation, the average temperature from January to November for the period 2000-2009 was 24.0 degrees, the highest decadal average on record. The average temperatures for the same months (January to November) in the decades of 1980-1989 and 1990-1999 were 23.4 and 23.8 degrees respectively.

Table 1: Top 10 highest average temperatures from January to November recorded at the Hong Kong Observatory Headquarters

Year	Average temperature from January to November (Degree Celsius)
2002	24.4
1999	24.4
1998	24.4
1966	24.3
2009	24.1
2003	24.1
2001	24.1
2007	24.0
2006	24.0
1987	24.0