AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 | S t a t e o f t h e C l i m a t e i n 2 0 2 0 7 . R E G I O N A L C L I M AT E S S357 STATE OF THE CLIMATE IN 2020 Special Online Supplement to the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society Vol.102, No. 8, August, 2021 https://doi.org/10.1175/2021BAMSStateoftheClimate_Chapter7.1 Corresponding authors: North America: Ahira Sánchez-Lugo / Ahira.Sanchez-Lugo@noaa.gov. Central America and the Caribbean: Ahira Sánchez-Lugo / Ahira.Sanchez-Lugo@noaa.gov South America: Ahira Sánchez-Lugo / Ahira.Sanchez-Lugo@noaa.gov Africa: Ademe Mekonnen / amekonne@ncat.edu Europe: Peter Bissolli / Peter.Bissolli@dwd.de Asia: Tim Li / timli@hawaii.edu Oceania: Catherine Ganter / Catherine.Ganter@bom.gov.au ©2021 American Meteorological Society For information regarding reuse of this content and general copyright information, consult the AMS Copyright Policy. 7. REGIONAL CLIMATES P. Bissolli, C. Ganter, T. Li, A. Mekonnen, and A. Sánchez-Lugo, Eds. Unauthenticated | Downloaded 11/11/21 06:52 PM UTC AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 | S t a t e o f t h e C l i m a t e i n 2 0 2 0 7 . R E G I O N A L C L I M AT E S S358 STATE OF THE CLIMATE IN 2020 Regional Climates Editors Jessica Blunden Tim Boyer Chapter Editors Freya Aldred Peter Bissolli Howard J. Diamond Matthew L. Druckenmiller Robert J. H. Dunn Catherine Ganter Nadine Gobron Gregory C. Johnson Rick Lumpkin Tim Li Ademe Mekonnen John B. Miller Twila A. Moon Ahira Sánchez-Lugo Ted A. Scambos Carl J. Schreck III Sharon Stammerjohn Richard L. Thoman Kate M. Willett Technical Editor Andrea Andersen BAMS Special Editor for Climate Michael A. Alexander American Meteorological Society Unauthenticated | Downloaded 11/11/21 06:52 PM UTC AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 | S t a t e o f t h e C l i m a t e i n 2 0 2 0 7 . R E G I O N A L C L I M AT E S S359 Cover credit: Rights Managed Photo by STR/AFP via ©Getty Images Flooded buildings are seen in Nanjing, in China's eastern Jiangsu province on 19 July 2020. Vast swaths of China were inundated by the worst flooding in decades along the Yangtze River. Regional Climates is one chapter from the State of the Climate in 2020 annual report. Compiled by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate in 2020 is based on contributions from scientists from around the world. It provides a detailed update on global climate indicators, notable weather events, and other data collected by environmental monitoring stations and instruments located on land, water, ice, and in space. The full report is available from https://doi.org/10.1175/2021BAMSStateoftheClimate.1. How to cite this document: Citing the complete report: Blunden, J. and T. Boyer, Eds., 2021: “State of the Climate in 2020“. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc, 102 (8), Si–S475, https://doi.org/10.1175/2021BAMSStateoftheClimate.1 Citing this chapter: Bissolli, P., C. Ganter, T. Li, A. Mekonnen, and A. Sánchez-Lugo, Eds., 2021: Regional Climates [in “State of the Climate in 2020“]. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 102 (8), S357–S463, https://doi.org/10.1175/2021BAMSStateoftheClimate_Chapter7.1. Citing a section (example): Thiaw, W. M., P.-H. Kamsu-Tamo, M. F. Zaheer, and B. Pugh, 2021: Central Asia [in “State of the Climate in 2020“]. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 102 (8), S441–S445, https://doi.org/10.1175/2021BAMSStateoftheClimate_Chapter7.1 Unauthenticated | Downloaded 11/11/21 06:52 PM UTC AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 | S t a t e o f t h e C l i m a t e i n 2 0 2 0 7 . R E G I O N A L C L I M AT E S S360 Editor and Author Affiliations (alphabetical by name) Alfaro, Eric J., Center for Geophysical Research and School of Physics, University of Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica Alves, Lincoln M., Centro de Ciencia do Sistema Terrestre/Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais, Sao Paulo, Brazil Amador, Jorge A., Center for Geophysical Research and School of Physics, University of Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica Andrade, B., Seychelles Meteorological Authority, Mahe, Seychelles Argeñalso, Francisco, Centro Nacional de Estudios Atmosféricos, Oceanográficos y Sísmicos, Tegucigalpa, Honduras Asgarzadeh, P., National Center for Climate and Drought Crisis Management, Islamic Republic of Iranian Meteorological Organization, Iran Baez, Julian, Universidad Católica Nuestra Senora de la Asunción, Asunción, Paraguay Barakiza, Reuben, Burundi Hydrometeorological Department, Bujumbura, Burundi Bardin, M. Yu., Yu. A. Izrael Institute of Global Climate and Ecology; Institute of Geography, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia Bardin, Mikhail, Institute of Global Climate and Ecology, Moscow, Russia Bissolli, Peter, Deutscher Wetterdienst, WMO RA VI Regional Climate Centre Network, Offenbach, Germany Bochníček, Oliver, Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute, Slovakia Bukunt, Brandon, NOAA/NWS Weather Forecast Office, Guam Calderón, Blanca, Center for Geophysical Research, University of Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica Campbell, Jayaka D., Department of Physics, The University of the West Indies, Jamaica Chandler, Elise, Bureau of Meteorology, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Chang’a, Ladislaus, Tanzania Meteorological Authority, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Cheng, Vincent Y. S., Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario, Canada Clarke, Leonardo A., Department of Physics, The University of the West Indies, Jamaica Correa, Kris, Servicio Nacional de Meteorología e Hidrología del Perú, Lima, Perú Cortés, Catalina, Dirección de Meteorológica de Chile, Santiago de Chile, Chile Costa, Felipe, International Centre for Research on El Niño, Guayaqui, Ecuador Cunha, A.P.M.A., Centro Nacional de Monitoramento e Alertas de Desastres Naturais CEMADEN, Sao Paulo, Brazil Demircan, Mesut, Turkish State Meteorological Service, Ankara, Turkey Dhurmea, K. R., Mauritius Meteorological Service, Vacoas, Mauritius Diawara, A., NOAA/NWS National Centers for Environmental Prediction, Climate Prediction Center, College Park, Maryland Diouf, Sarah, NOAA/NWS National Centers for Environmental Prediction, Climate Prediction Center, College Park, Maryland Dulamsuren, Dashkhuu, Climate change and resource research section, Information and Research, Institute of Meteorology, Hydrology and Environment, National Agency for Meteorology, Hydrology and Environmental Monitoring, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia ElKharrim, M., Direction de la Météorologie Nationale Maroc, Rabat, Morocco Espinoza, Jhan-Carlo, Université Grenoble Alpes, Institut des Géosciences de l’Environnement, IRD, CNRS, Grenoble INP, Grenoble, France Fazl-Kazem, A., National Center for Drought Monitoring and Crisis Management, Islamic Republic of Iranian Meteorological Organization, Iran Fenimore, Chris, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Fuhrman, Steven, NOAA/NWS National Centers for Environmental Prediction, Climate Prediction Center, College Park, Maryland Ganter, Catherine, Bureau of Meteorology, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Gleason, Karin, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Guard, Charles “Chip” P., Tropical Weather Sciences, Sinajana, Guam Hagos, Samson, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Department of Energy, Richland, Washington Hanafusa, Mizuki, Tokyo Climate Center, Japan Meteorological Agency, Japan Hasannezhad, H. R., National Center for Climate and Drought Crisis Management, Islamic Republic of Iranian Meteorological Organization, Iran Heim, Jr., Richard R., NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Hidalgo, Hugo G., Center for Geophysical Research and School of Physics, University of Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica Ijampy, J. A., Nigerian Meteorological Agency, Abuja, Nigeria Im, Gyo Soon, Climate Change Monitoring Division, Korea Meteorological Administration, South Korea Joseph, Annie C., Dominica Meteorological Service, Canefield, Dominica Jumaux, G., Météo France, Direction Interrégionale pour l’Océan Indien, Réunion Kabidi, K. R., Direction de la Météorologie Nationale Maroc, Rabat, Morocco Kamsu-Tamo, P-H., NOAA/NWS National Centers for Environmental Prediction, Climate Prediction Center, College Park, Maryland Kennedy, John, Met Office Hadley Centre, Exeter, United Kingdom Khan, Valentina, Hydrometeorological Research Center of the Russian Federation/A.M. Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia Khiem, Mai Van, Viet Nam National Center of Hydro-Meteorology Forecasting, Viet Nam Meteorology Hydrology Administration, Viet Nam King’uza, Philemon, Tanzania Meteorological Authority, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Korshunova, Natalia N., All-Russian Research Institute of Hydrometeorological Information - World Data Center, Obninsk, Russia Kruger, A. C., Climate Service, South African Weather Service, Pretoria, South Africa Lakatos, Mónika, Climatology Unit, Hungarian Meteorological Service, Budapest, Hungary Lam, Hoang Phuc, Viet Nam National Center of Hydro-Meteorology Forecasting, Viet Nam Meteorology Hydrology Administration, Viet Nam Lander, Mark A., University of Guam, Mangilao, Guam Lavado-Casimiro, Waldo, Servicio Nacional de Meteorología e Hidrología del Perú, Lima, Perú Lee, Tsz-Cheung, Hong Kong Observatory, Hong Kong, China Leung, Kinson H. Y., Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario, Canada Li, Tim, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA Macara, Gregor, National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, Ltd., Auckland, New Zealand Mamen, Jostein, Climate Division, Norwegian Meteorological Institute, Oslo, Norway Marengo, José A., Centro Nacional de Monitoramento e Alertas de Desastres Naturais CEMADEN, Sao Paulo, Brazil McBride, Charlotte, Climate Service, South African Weather Service, Pretoria, South Africa Mekonnen, Ademe, Department of Physics, North Carolina A & T University, Greensboro, North Carolina Misevicius, Noelia, Instituto Uruguayo de Meteorología, Montevideo, Uruguay Moise, Aurel, Centre for Climate Research Singapore, Meteorological Service, Singapore Unauthenticated | Downloaded 11/11/21 06:52 PM UTC AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 | S t a t e o f t h e C l i m a t e i n 2 0 2 0 7 . R E G I O N A L C L I M AT E S S361 Editor and Author Affiliations (alphabetical by name) Molina-Carpio, Jorge, Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, La Paz, Bolivia Mora, Natali, Center for Geophysical Research, University of Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica Mostafa, Awatif E., Department of Seasonal Forecast and Climate Research, Cairo Numerical Weather Prediction, Egyptian Meteorological Authority, Cairo, Egypt Mtongori, Habiba, Tanzania Meteorological Authority, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Mutai, Charles, Kenya Meteorological Department, Nairobi, Kenya Ndiaye, O., Senegalese Meteorological Service, Dakar, Senegal Nieto, Juan José, International Centre for Research on El Niño, Guayaqui, Ecuador Nyembo, Latifa, Tanzania Meteorological Authority, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Nying’uro, Patricia, Kenya Meteorological Department, Nairobi, Kenya Pan, Xiao, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, China Pascual Ramírez, Reynaldo, National Meteorological Service of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico Phillips, David, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario, Canada Pugh, Brad, NOAA/NWS National Centers for Environmental Prediction, Climate Prediction Center, College Park, Maryland Rajeevan, Madhavan, Earth System Science Organization, Ministry of Earth Sciences, New Delhi, India Rakotonirina, M. L., Madagascar Meteorological Service, Madagascar Ramos, Andrea M., Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia, Brasilia, Brazil Robjhon, M., NOAA/NWS National Centers for Environmental Prediction, Climate Prediction Center, College Park, Maryland Rodriguez Camino, Ernesto,  Agencia Estatal de Meteorología, Madrid, Spain Rodriguez Guisado, Esteban, Agencia Estatal de Meteorología, Madrid, Spain Ronchail, Josyane, Laboratoire LOCEAN-IPSL, Paris, France Rösner, Benjamin, Laboratory for Climatology and Remote Sensing, Faculty of Geography, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany Salinas, Roberto, Dirección de Meteorología e Hidrología/Dirección Nacional de Aeronáutica Civil, Asunción, Paraguay Sánchez-Lugo, Ahira, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Sato, Hirotaka, Tokyo Climate Center, Japan Meteorological Agency, Japan Sato, Hitoshi, Tokyo Climate Center, Japan Meteorological Agency, Japan Sayouri, Amal, Direction de la Météorologie Nationale Maroc, Rabat, Morocco Sebaziga, Joseph, Rwanda Meteorology Agency, Kigali, Rwanda Sensoy, Serhat, Turkish State Meteorological Service, Ankara, Turkey Spillane, Sandra, Met Éireann, Dublin, Ireland Editorial and Production Team Allen, Jessicca, Graphics Support, Cooperative Institute for Satellite Earth System Studies, North Carolina State University, Asheville, North Carolina Andersen, Andrea, Technical Editor, Innovative Consulting Management Services, LLC, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Hammer, Gregory, Content Team Lead, Communications and Outreach, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Love-Brotak, S. Elizabeth, Lead Graphics Production, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Misch, Deborah J., Graphics Support, Innovative Consulting Management Services, LLC, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Riddle, Deborah B., Graphics Support, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Veasey, Sara W., Visual Communications Team Lead, Communications and Outreach, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Trachte, Katja, Brandenburg University of Technology, Cottbus, Germany van der Schrier, Gerard, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, De Bilt, Netherlands Sima, F., Division of Meteorology, Department of Water Resources, Banjul, The Gambia Smith, Adam, NOAA/NESDIS National Centers for Environmental Information, Asheville, North Carolina Spence, Jacqueline M., Meteorological Service, Jamaica, Kingston, Jamaica Sreejith, O. P., India Meteorological Department, Pune, India Srivastava, A. K., India Meteorological Department, Pune, India Stella, José L., Servicio Meteorológico Nacional, Buenos Aires, Argentina Stephenson, Kimberly A., Department of Life Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Jamaica Stephenson, Tannecia S., Department of Physics, The University of the West Indies, Jamaica Supari, S., Division for Climate Variability Analysis, Center for Climate Change Information, BMKG, Indonesia Tajbakhsh-Mosalman, Sahar, Islamic Republic of Iranian Meteorological Organization, Iran Tamar, Gerard, Grenada Meteorological Office, St. George, Grenada Taylor, Michael A., Department of Physics, The University of the West Indies, Jamaica Teshome, Asaminew, Ethiopia Meteorological Agency, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Thiaw, Wassila M., NOAA/NWS National Centers for Environmental Prediction, Climate Prediction Center, College Park, Maryland Tobin, Skie, Bureau of Meteorology, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Trotman, Adrian R., Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology, Bridgetown, Barbados Van Meerbeeck, Cedric J., Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology, Bridgetown, Barbados Vazifeh, A., National Center for Drought Monitoring and Crisis Management, Islamic Republic of Iranian Meteorological Organization, Iran Wakamatsu, Shunya, Tokyo Climate Center, Japan Meteorological Agency, Japan Wang, Wei, Minhang Meteorological Bureau, Shanghai, China Xin, Fei, Shanghai Climate Center, Shanghai, China Zeng, F., Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Department of Energy, Richland, Washington Zhang, Peiqun, Beijing Climate Center, Beijing, China Zhu, Zhiwei, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, China Unauthenticated | Downloaded 11/11/21 06:52 PM UTC AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 | S t a t e o f t h e C l i m a t e i n 2 0 2 0 7 . R E G I O N A L C L I M AT E S S371 Tropical Storm Cristobal, the first tropical cyclone to affect the country during 2020, brought significant rainfall to southern Mexico and the Yucatan Peninsula, causing flooding over the Yucatan Peninsula during 1–4 June. Hurricane Hanna impacted northeastern Mexico on 26–27 July, and Tropical Storm Gamma and Hurricanes Delta and Zeta tracked over the Yucatan Peninsula in October (see section 4g2 for details). Drought majorly impacted the northern states of Chihuahua and Sonora throughout the year. At the end of 2020, Mexico’s federal government issued a Drought Disaster Declaration for both states. With the declaration, these states were given access to resources to mitigate their losses; most of the losses reported were on rain-fed crops and livestock. c. Central America and the Caribbean—A. Sánchez-Lugo, Ed. 1) Central America—J. A. Amador, H. G. Hidalgo, E. J. Alfaro, B. Calderón, and N. Mora For this region, nine stations from five countries were analyzed (see Fig. 7.8 for data and station list). The station distribution covers the relevant intraseasonal regimes of precipitation (Amador 1998; Magaña et al. 1999; Amador et al. 2016a,b), wind (Amador 2008), and temperature (Hidalgo et al. 2019) on the Caribbean and Pacific slopes of Central America (CA). Precipitation and tem- perature records for the stations analyzed and regional wind were provided either by CA National Weather Services (CA-NWS), NOAA, or the University of Costa Rica. Anomalies are reported using a 1981–2010 base period and were calculated using CA-NWS data. The methodologies used for all variables can be found in Amador et al. (2011). (I) TEMPERATURE The mean temperature (Tm) pentad frequency distributions in 2020, as well as the climatology, for the nine stations analyzed are shown in Fig. 7.8. During 2020, most stations had near- to cooler- than-normal conditions. The 2020 mean temperature for Liberia, Costa Rica (Tm7), was at least 3°C below average. Meanwhile, Puerto Barrios, Guatemala (Tm2), observed an annual tempera- ture that was 2°C above average, the highest departure among the stations. Puerto Limón, Costa Rica (Tm4), had a below-average annual temperature with respect to its climatological normal, while Puerto San José, Guatemala (Tm9), observed an above-average temperature. Philip Gold- son International Airport (Tm1) recorded slightly above-average annual temperature for 2020. A comparison between the climatology and the 2020 pentad distributions shows that seven of the nine stations presented different statistical distributions (exceptions were Puerto Lempira [Tm3] and David [Tm6]), suggesting that Tm was distributed significantly different from the climatol- ogy in 2020. Puerto Barrios (Tm2), Puerto Limón (Tm4), Tocumen International Airport (Tm5), Liberia (Tm7), Choluteca (Tm8), and Puerto San José (Tm9) showed significantly different means than climatology. (II) PRECIPITATION The accumulated pentad precipitation (P) time series for the nine stations in Central America are presented in Fig. 7.8. Puerto Barrios (P2), Puerto Lempira (P3), Puerto Limón (P4), and Tocu- men International Airport (P5) showed different 2020 statistical distributions from that of the base period, while the remainder of the stations showed no significant differences from climatology. Puerto Limón observed drier-than-normal conditions during most of the year, while Liberia (P7) was wetter than normal (after pentad 60, approximately mid-October), ending the year with a rainfall surplus. These conditions in Liberia and Limón are consistent with a characteristic tele- connection pattern associated with La Niña, the cold phase of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO; Hidalgo et al. 2019). General wet conditions were also registered in Puerto Barrios and Puerto Lempira after pentad 60. For Tocumen International Airport (P5) and David (P6), both in Panamá, precipitation totals were near normal. Puerto San José (P9) began the year with above- normal rainfall, but below-normal precipitation rates were registered around mid-September and Unauthenticated | Downloaded 11/11/21 06:52 PM UTC AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 | S t a t e o f t h e C l i m a t e i n 2 0 2 0 7 . R E G I O N A L C L I M AT E S S372 the year ended drier than normal. Philip Goldson International Airport (P1) and Choluteca (P8) showed the opposite pattern: the year began drier than average but increased precipitation rates around pentad 60 led to wetter-than-normal conditions by the end of 2020. Low-level circulation anomalies in the westernmost Caribbean Sea and Pacific regions show slightly weaker winds in the trade wind system during July (vectors in Fig. 7.8), but the relation- ship of precipitation distribution associated with the emergence of La Niña during summer did not follow the normal pattern (Amador 2008). During a typical La Niña episode, below-normal winds are usually associated with slightly below-normal precipitation along the Caribbean slopes and above-normal precipitation on the Pacific slopes during summer. In 2020, only Puerto Limón showed that expected behavior with below-normal precipitation. The anomalously active hur- ricane season may be responsible for this anomaly (see Sidebar 7.1). Fig. 7.8. Mean surface temperature (Tm; °C) frequency (F; days), and accumulated pentad precipitation (P; mm) time series are shown for nine stations (blue dots) in Central America: (1) Philip Goldson International Airport, Belize; (2) Puerto Barrios, Guatemala; (3) Puerto Lempira, Honduras; (4) Puerto Limón, Costa Rica; (5) Tocumen International Airport, Panamá; (6) David, Panamá; (7) Liberia, Costa Rica; (8) Choluteca, Honduras; and (9) Puerto San José, Guatemala. The blue solid line represents the 1981–2010 average values and the red solid line shows 2020 values. Vertical dashed lines show the mean temperature for 2020 (red) and the 1981–2010 period (blue). Vectors indicate July wind anomalies at 925 hPa (1981–2010 base period). Shading depicts regional elevation (m). (Sources: NOAA/NCEI and CA-NWS.) Unauthenticated | Downloaded 11/11/21 06:52 PM UTC AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 | S t a t e o f t h e C l i m a t e i n 2 0 2 0 7 . R E G I O N A L C L I M AT E S S373 (III) NOTABLE EVENTS AND IMPACTS In the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, Tropical Storm Amanda made landfall along the Guatemala– El Salvador border on 31 May, becoming the only named storm of the season to make landfall in that region. From the remnants of this storm, Tropical Storm Cristóbal (1–12 June) formed in the Gulf of Campeche (Mexico), affecting northern Central America and causing more than 30 fatalities in the region. In the Caribbean basin, tropical cyclone activity during 2020 was extremely active with 10 named storms, five hurricanes, and three major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher on the Saffir- Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale). The three major hurricanes were Delta (5–10 October, Category 4); Eta (31 October–13 November, Category 4, landfall over Nicaragua and Honduras on 3–5 November); and Iota (13–18 November, Category 4). Eta and Iota made landfall near the same location between the northeastern coast of Nicaragua and southern coast of Honduras as major hurricanes and were associated with severe impacts over the isthmus. As seen in Table 7.1, the season resulted in a total of 237 fatalities due to hydrometeorological events and 16 deaths by lightning strikes. 2) Caribbean—T. S. Stephenson, M. A. Taylor, A. R. Trotman, C. J. Van Meerbeeck, K. A. Stephenson, L.A. Clarke, G. Tamar, J. M. Spence, Annie C. Joseph, and J. D. Campbell (I) TEMPERATURE In 2020, the Caribbean experienced above-average and record temperatures, with annual mean temperatures anomalies ranging from +0.25°C to +2.50°C above the 1981–2010 average. Anomalies were highest over the northwestern Caribbean (Jamaica, Cuba, and the Bahamas) and over Trinidad and Barbados in the east (Fig. 7.9a). The annual average temperature anomaly over the domain was approximately 0.85°C above average, the second highest since the start of the record in 1891 (Fig. 7.10a). Region-wide, the month of September was particularly hot, with 26 Caribbean locations (out of 28 with an up-to-date historical record of daily maximum temperature spanning at least 30 years) recording an above-average number of hot days—that is, days with a maximum temperature exceeding the 90th percentile as calculated from a 1985–2014 climatologi- cal period—between 8 and 28 hot days. Annual average maximum temperatures were record high for Freeport, The Bahamas (29.9°C; since 1971), for Canefield, Dominica (31.9°C; since 1982), and for Crown Point, Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago (31.3°C; since 1971), while Lamentin, Martinique (31.3°C), and Sint Maarten (31.1°C) reported their second-highest maximum temperatures since 1971 and 1983, respectively, and Hewannora, Saint Lucia (31.0°C), reported its third highest since 1979. Record high monthly average maximum temperatures for any month were observed in Aruba (34.3°C in September), Martinique (32.9°C in September in Lamentin), and Saint Lucia (32.4°C in September at Hewanorra), since 1985, 1975, and 1986, respectively. Record daily maximum tem- peratures were observed in September relative to the entire historical records for the countries Table 7.1. Number of fatalities in several Central American countries due to tropical storms and lightning strikes. Some countries reported fatalities for two storms. (Data sources: Central American National Weather Services, National Emergency Committees communications and regional newspapers.) Country Amanda Christóbal Eta Iota Lightning Strikes Panamá — — 19 — 3 Costa Rica — — 2 — 1 Nicaragua — — 2 16 7 El Salvador 27 1 1 1 Honduras 4 77 22 1 Guatemala 2 3 53 8 3 Totals 33 3 154 47 16 Unauthenticated | Downloaded 11/11/21 06:52 PM UTC