We all know it was hot in July….but how hot was it really? According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 9,000 daily records were broken or tied last month, including 2,755 highest maximum temperatures (i.e daytime highs) and 6,171 highest minimum temperatures (i.e., nighttime lows). The statistics are awaiting final certification from the National Climatic Data Center, and more records may be added before the numbers are finalized.
According to NOAA, “some cities reached daily high temperatures 19 out of the 31 days in the month. The largest concentration of these records occur in the southern Plains, Midwest, and Northeast U.S., which were gripped by a series of heat waves pushing heat indices well into the 100s (Fahrenheit) for many days at a time.”
Credit: NOAA Environmental Visualization Lab
