Niyogi said it is "very hard to root out" the role played by short-term weather patterns and longer-term trends in creating conditions recorded over a given stretch, such as the period from June 2011 to June 2012 measured by NOAA. But he said, "They're all tied together" and can contribute to major issues, pointing specifically to the interdependent relationship between heat and drought.

CNN: Past 12 months warmest ever recorded in United States

Though some may see this as an unlikely pairing, the close alignment of IT and finance means that CIOs and CFOs are finding themselves in a significantly more interdependent relationship.

FORBES: CIO, Meet The CFO: 5 Ways To Get More From Your Cloud