July’s heat record was broken across the contiguous US, as the nation’s lower 48 states logged the hottest month ever measured in 132 years of records. Forecasters said the average temperature in July reached 76.9 degrees Fahrenheit, about 3.3 degrees above the 20th-century average.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said the heat hit especially hard across much of the Mountain West, Southwest, Northern Plains, and Southeast. Alaska was unusually cool, but that did little to offset the widespread heat elsewhere. In the Mid-Atlantic, cities including Raleigh, North Carolina; Richmond, Virginia; and Washington, DC, recorded their hottest Fourth of July on record, according to the agency.
The July heat record also topped a benchmark long associated with the Dust Bowl era. NOAA said this month beat the July 1936 record by 0.8 degrees. That 1936 stretch is tied with 2021 for America’s hottest summer from June through August, though NOAA noted the most severe temperatures then were concentrated in the Midwest and were worsened by farming practices of the time. Today’s record heat is being linked by scientists to the burning of coal, oil and gas.
The month did not bring only extreme heat. NOAA said the lower 48 also saw periods of torrential rain and several major flash flooding events, even though precipitation for the month was below average overall. Eastern New York alone received as much as 12 inches of rainfall last month, underscoring how the same month can bring both dry heat and dangerous downpours.
Climate scientist Katharine Jacobs of the University of Arizona said the combination of extreme heat, drought and fire conditions fits the climate change signal. Her comments reflected a broader scientific view that heat waves are becoming more punishing as temperatures rise and nights fail to cool off enough for the body to recover.
