Summer 2021 Was Hottest on Record in the Contiguous U.S., NOAA Says

https://weather.com/news/climate/news/2021-09-09-summer-hottest-on-record-united-states-noaa?cm_ven=hp-slot-3

By Chris Dolce

Sept. 9, 2021

 

Summer 2021 was the hottest in 126 years of records for the contiguous United States, according to a report released by NOAA on Thursday.

The average temperature for all of the Lower 48 states from June through August was 74.0 degrees Fahrenheit, or 2.6 degrees above average. That barely edged out the Dust Bowl summer of 1936 for the top spot by less than 0.01 of a degree, NOAA said.

For reference, meteorologists define summer based on what is typically the hottest time of year – June through August.

California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Utah all had a record-hot summer. An additional 21 states had a top-10 hottest summer, stretching from the Front Range of the Rockies and Northern Plains to the Great Lakes and Northeast.

Only parts of the Deep South had a summer with temperatures close to average.

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Four of the five hottest contiguous U.S. summers have now happened in the past 11 years.

2021 and 1936 are neck-and-neck for first and second place. Rounding out the top five are 2012, 2011 and 2020.

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Eight of the nation's top 10 warmest summers have occurred in this century, according to NOAA. Only two summers in the 21st century were cooler than average – 2004 and 2009.

Since 1970, much of the U.S. has seen a warmer trend in summer, according to an analysis from Climate Central. This is particularly the case from Texas to the West and also in much of the East from Florida to Michigan to New England.

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