Year 2009: Fifth hottest year on record

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed Tuesday that 2009 was the fifth-hottest year since instrumental climate records began in 1850.

In a press release published in UN venue in New York, the agency pointed out that the south hemisphere was the warmest, mainly during winter and spring.

Figures show that the last decade was warmer than the decade of the 1990s, which in turn was warmer than the 1980s," the technical agency said in a statement, making the last 10 years the "warmest decade on record."

At the same time, 2009 witnessed severe droughts, intense storms and floods around the world.

Meanwhile, the last month of 2009 was cooler in the northern part of the earth, with heavy snow storms in Europe, Asia and North America. The WMO marked Tuesday its 60th anniversary and celebrate the World Meteorological Day 2010.

The entity was founded with the purpose of promoting international cooperation regarding weather, climate and water.

The WMO unites 189 National Meteorological Services of UN member States. According to WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud, the entity gathers information from 10,000 land stations and 3,000 air stations, 3,000 spotter planes, 1,000 ships and about 70 satellites. - United Nations, Prensa Latina