I am left wondering what this really meams.

The planet had its biggest temperature spike in modern history in February https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2016/03/14/the-planet-had-its-biggest-temperature-spike-in-modern-history-in-february/ I've found this article on News Google Reader : https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bionicapps.newsgooglereader