"As each year passes and we hear that a warming record has been broken, or nearly broken again, it provides further evidence that unfortunately we are not just seeing a natural cycle of global warming, and that instead humans are having an effect on the climate, " said Dr Huntingford, who works with climate models to understand the implications of increased levels of greenhouse gases.

BBC: 2011 is UK's second warmest year on record - Met Office

The asteroid trails debris behind it as it travels across the sky, and in January of each year, the Earth passes through that debris trail.

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