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Summer 2018 was 4th hottest on record for U.S.

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September 10, 2018

View larger. | An annotated map of the United States showing notable climate events that occurred in August and summer 2018. Image via NOAA NCEI.

A NOAA analysis released on Thursday (September 6, 2018), reported that this summer – the months of June, July, and August – was the fourth hottest on record for the contiguous United States.

During the 2018 meteorological summer (June through August), the average temperature for the contiguous U.S. was 73.5 degrees Fahrenheit (16.05 degrees Celsius), which is 2.1 degrees F above average.

According to the NOAA report, 23 states across the U.S. West, South and Northeast had much-above-average summer temperatures. The average overnight low summer temperature for the contiguous U.S. was 60.9 degrees F (16.96 degrees C), which is 2.5 degrees F above average and 0.1 degree F hotter than the previous record in 2016.

In August, Hurricane Lane drenched Hawaii. The storm brought massive flooding and extreme rainfall – preliminary reports of more than 50 inches (127 cm) – to parts of the Hawaiian Islands. This is Hurricane Lane on August 22, 2018. Image via NOAA.

The average U.S. temperature for the year-to-date (January through August) was 55.7 degrees F (13.16 C), 1.8 degrees F above normal. It was the 10th warmest year-to-date on record, with an above-average precipitation total of 21.67 inches (55 cm), 0.96 (2.4 cm) of an inch above average.

Bottom line: A NOAA report says that summer 2018 was the 4th hottest on record.

Eleanor Imster

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About the Author:

Eleanor Imster has helped write and edit EarthSky since 1995. She was an integral part of the award-winning EarthSky radio series almost since it began until it ended in 2013. She and her husband live in Tennessee, where they enjoy guitar playing and singing. They have 2 grown sons.