What the thermometers say
Nigeria is warming. Weather stations run by NiMet, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency, show average temperatures rising by roughly one degree since the mid-20th century, with the fastest change in recent decades.
The clearest signal is not the average. It is the count of very hot days and warm nights, which keeps climbing. Warm nights matter because night is when bodies and buildings are supposed to cool down.
What the rain says
Rainfall is getting less reliable, and the change has two faces. In the north, dry spells stretch longer and the desert edge creeps south. In the south, including Lagos, more of the rain arrives in short, violent bursts that drainage was never built for.
Total yearly rainfall can look normal while the pattern becomes dangerous. Five hours of rain doing a week's work is a flood, not a season.
Check it yourself
Do not take this course's word for it. NiMet publishes a Seasonal Climate Prediction every year. The World Bank's Climate Knowledge Portal has Nigeria's full temperature and rainfall record. Our World in Data lets you chart it in your browser.
This habit is the whole point of Cylin. A claim you cannot check is just vibes. Every claim in this course comes with a place to check it.
Hold on to these
- Nigeria has warmed roughly one degree, with hot days and warm nights increasing fastest.
- Northern Nigeria faces longer dry spells. Southern Nigeria faces heavier rain bursts.
- NiMet, the World Bank portal and Our World in Data hold the raw record. Check them.
Check yourself
No grades here. If you can answer these out loud, you own the lesson.
- 1.Which is rising faster in Nigeria: average temperature or the number of very hot days and nights?
- 2.How can total rainfall stay the same while flood risk goes up?
- 3.Name two sources where you could verify Nigeria's temperature record.