Sen. Jim Inhofe (and, alas, Tulsa's former mayor) is the nation's most infamous global warming denier. This position has put him on the wrong side of science and made him the laughing stock of the scientific establishment.

Even worse for Inhofe, new facts keep undermining the senator's assertions. Here's the latest data (yes, actual data, which Inhofe eschews) that puts another dent in the claims of Tulsa's most notorious anti-scientist:

Last year was the eighth warmest year on record, according to the National Climatic Data Center.

The world's temperature in 2008 tied that of 2001, according to the center, a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Preliminary calculations show the world's average temperature for 2008 was 0.88 degree Fahrenheit above the 20th Century average of 57.0 degrees.

The ranking means that the 10 warmest years on record have occurred since 1997. Record keeping began in 1880.