Climate Central’s Monthly Briefing Highlights from February 2026

February 2026 was the fifth-warmest month globally on record, with the contiguous U.S. experiencing its second-warmest winter in 132 years. A critical 'snow drought' affected the western U.S., where snow-covered areas in January were only 34% of normal, threatening water supplies for agriculture and energy. Climate Central's analysis indicates that human-driven climate change significantly influenced winter temperatures, particularly in the Southwest, and is the primary cause of spring warming in 98% of 241 examined U.S. cities.

• February 2026 was the fifth-warmest month on record globally for combined land and ocean temperatures, with ocean areas specifically ranking as the second-warmest on record for that month.
• The contiguous United States experienced its second-warmest winter on record for the period of December, January, and February 2025-2026, with nine states recording their warmest winter ever.
• A historic snow drought occurred across the western United States, with January 2026 snow-covered areas reaching a record low of 34% of normal and snow cover duration by the end of February being 63% below normal.
• Water security in the western U.S. is threatened as snow water equivalent (SWE) is below 50% of the 1991-2020 normal in most watershed basins from Oregon to New Mexico, with record lows in Colorado and near-record lows in Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon, and Utah.
• Human-driven climate change is identified as the primary cause of spring warming in 98% of 241 U.S. cities analyzed between 1970 and 2025.
• Climate Central's Climate Shift Index (CSI) analysis shows that more than one in six people globally experienced temperatures with a strong climate change influence every day from December 2025 to February 2026.
• Forecasts suggest global temperatures will likely rise well above 1.5°C above the 1850-1900 preindustrial baseline by the end of 2026, potentially influenced by the development of El Niño conditions.

APA

Brady, J., & Zack (2026). Climate Central’s Monthly Briefing Highlights from February 2026. Climate Central. https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-briefings/february-2026

Chicago

Brady, Jen, and Zack. Climate Central’s Monthly Briefing Highlights from February 2026. Climate Central, 2026. https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-briefings/february-2026.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Brady |first1=Jen |last2=Zack |title=Climate Central’s Monthly Briefing Highlights from February 2026 |publisher=Climate Central |date=February 2026 |url=https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-briefings/february-2026 |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{brady2026climate, author = {Brady, Jen and Zack}, title = {{Climate Central’s Monthly Briefing Highlights from February 2026}}, institution = {Climate Central}, year = {2026}, month = feb, url = {https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-briefings/february-2026}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }