Record-breaking temperatures scorched the planet last year, making 2014 the hottest in more than a century and raising new concerns about global warming, according to US government scientists.

“The globally averaged temperature over land and ocean surfaces for 2014 was the highest among all years since record keeping began in 1880,” said a report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The average temperature in 2014 was above the previous record-holding years of 2005 and 2010.