Asia Climate – April 2026 Update
Top 5 Countries: China, India, Indonesia, Japan, and Pakistan
This month in numbers
Asia experienced a significant temperature anomaly in March 2026, recording +2.65°C above the 1961–1990 average. The 3-month anomaly stands at +2.17°C, while the 12-month rolling anomaly from April 2025 to March 2026 reached +1.87°C. Globally, 8 of the top 10 warmest 1-month anomalies were US states, with Asia not featuring in the top 10 warmest regions for this period. However, Vietnam was the 3rd coolest region globally for the 1-month anomaly.
Hottest & coolest countries
Turkey /climate/turkey recorded the highest 1-month anomaly in Asia at +4.09°C, followed closely by Syria /climate/syria at +4.05°C and Lebanon /climate/lebanon at +3.48°C. These countries are experiencing significantly warmer conditions. In contrast, Vietnam /climate/vietnam was the coolest country in Asia, with a 1-month anomaly of +0.29°C, followed by Sri Lanka /climate/sri-lanka at +0.48°C.
What's driving change?
The current ENSO state is Neutral, with a 3-month anomaly (January-March 2026) of -0.16°C versus 1991–2020. However, forecasts indicate a shift towards El Niño, with a 61% probability for May-July and a 79% probability for June-August. This transition in ENSO /climate/enso is a significant warming driver, as El Niño phases typically contribute to higher global temperatures. The effect is also a contributing factor to the observed anomalies across the continent.
Generated by Gemini from climate data and web sources
Temperature – Average
Asia – Monthly Temperature – All Years
Each line represents one year of monthly temperature in °C.
4BYO continent aggregate · equal-weight mean of member country monthly absolute temperatures (OWID/CRU TS).
Shifting Seasons
Warm / cold seasonsHow spring and autumn have shifted in Asia. Spring is defined as the date monthly temperatures first rise above the long-term annual mean (19.3°C, from 1941–1970); autumn is the date they fall back below it. Temperature swings 15.3°C peak-to-peak across the year - a classic four-seasons rhythm.
Baseline vs recent monthly temperature climatology. Biggest warming: Mar (+1.9°C).
4BYO continent aggregate · OWID/CRU TS country monthly temperatures.
Explore Countries on this Continent
This page shows the NOAA continental series. To browse country-level pages within Asia, use the countries tab on the Climate Updates hub and filter by continent.
Open Climate Updates → CountriesHottest & Coolest in Asia this Month
1-month anomaly vs 1961–1990 across the 23 members we cover. Click a name to open its profile.
Warmest
- 1.🇮🇷Iran+5.23°C
- 2.🇦🇪United Arab Emirates+3.84°C
- 3.🇵🇰Pakistan+3.77°C
- 4.🇸🇦Saudi Arabia+3.56°C
- 5.🇮🇶Iraq+3.34°C
Coolest
- 1.🇱🇰Sri Lanka+0.27°C
- 2.🇹🇭Thailand+0.38°C
- 3.🇧🇩Bangladesh+0.41°C
- 4.🇹🇷Turkey+0.48°C
- 5.🇲🇲Myanmar+0.57°C
Data Sources
- NOAA Climate at a Glance — continental land temperature · Open at NOAA
- Two-baseline model — comparison baseline 1961–1990; native baseline 1901-2000. Methodology →
Data Sources
Data Sources for Asia
Every figure on this page is sourced from official, openly published climate datasets. Anomalies are calculated against the 1961–1990 baseline (temperature) and 1991–2020 (rainfall, sunshine, frost) — see the Methodology & Sources page for the complete dataset list and update calendar.
FAQs
FAQs
How is the climate in Asia changing?
Asia is warming in line with the rest of the world. The page above shows the latest monthly temperature anomaly versus the 1961-1990 baseline, the long-term annual trend, and the region's rank in the historical record. The trend rate is shown as °C per decade in the headline panel; you can also see the warmest and coolest years on file.
Where does the climate data for Asia come from?
Climate data for Asia comes from authoritative climate datasets including national meteorological services and peer-reviewed reanalyses, refreshed every month, when the upstream temperature and rainfall data are refreshed.
What is the climate baseline used on this page?
Anomalies on this page are calculated against the 1961-1990 climatological baseline, which is the standard reference period used by the Met Office, NOAA, IPCC and most national climate services. Some panels also show the source-native 1901-2000 (NOAA) or 1991-2020 (WMO) baselines for verification. See Methodology & Sources for the full reference.
Which areas does the Asia climate data cover?
The Asia climate profile covers China, India, Indonesia, Japan and surrounding areas. The world's largest landmass - temperature trends across the continent
How often is the Asia climate update refreshed?
The Asia climate update is refreshed monthly, typically a few days after the previous month closes and the upstream provider (Met Office HadUK-Grid, NOAA Climate at a Glance, Copernicus ERA5 or the Global Carbon Project) publishes its update. See the Climate Rankings for cross-region comparisons.