National Geographic reports:

Scientists have measured what is likely the highest temperature ever on Antarctica: 63.5 degrees Fahrenheit (17.5 Celsius).

The measurements were made last Tuesday at Argentina's Esperanza Base, on the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, according to the meteorological website Weather Underground. The previous hottest known temperature on the continent was 62.8°F (17.1°C), recorded at Esperanza Base on April 24, 1961.

The Weather Underground called last week's temperatures a "remarkable heat wave," although they occurred during the end of the austral summer, when Antarctic temperatures are typically highest.

The temperature has yet to be certified as an official record for the continent by the World Meteorological Organization.

It's hard to draw much conclusion from a single temperature record, cautions Gavin Schmidt, a climate scientist with NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City. Last year Antarctica also logged a record cold temperature, he notes.