A record-breaking heatwave afflicting the western half of the United States moved eastward over the weekend toward the center of the country, bringing unseasonably warm temperatures to places that were at freezing or below just a week prior.
Dozens of cities from California to Colorado recorded their highest temperatures ever for the month of March, according to the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center.
On March 21, areas that saw new records for the highest temperatures in March included 92 Fahrenheit (33.3 degrees Celsius) recorded in Kansas City, Missouri, and North Platte, Nebraska.
Topeka, the state capital of Kansas, broke its March record Saturday with a high of 95F (35 degrees Celsius), weather officials said.
In Wyoming, the least populous U.S. state, all-time March temperatures were set in capital Cheyenne at 83F (28.3 degrees Celsius).
On top of the monthly all-time highs, the heatwave reached several other temperature milestones.
For instance, in Chanute, Kansas, temperatures went from a record low of 13F (-10.5 degrees Celsius) on March 16 to a record high of 91F (32.8) just four days later.
The National Weather Service issued an extreme heat warning for the same desert areas on March 21, as well as a red flag warning, indicating high wildfire risk, for much of the Central Plains states of Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma.
Scientists say there is overwhelming evidence that current heatwaves are a clear marker of global warming, a process driven chiefly by the burning of fossil fuels.
With winter in the northern hemisphere officially ending on March 20, the first day of astronomical spring, the soaring temperatures were wreaking havoc on wildlife in the West.
Many plants and trees are already blooming, and vegetation is growing at a fantastic clip, fueled by heavy rains in December and January.
