The main purpose of this ongoing blog will be to track planetary extreme, or record temperatures related to climate change. Any reports I see of ETs will be listed below the main topic of the day. I’ll refer to extreme or record temperatures as ETs (not extraterrestrials).😉
Main Topic: U.S. July 2024 Record Scoreboard and Climatological Review
Dear Diary. It’s time once again for our monthly climatological review. Here on this site, we usually present monthly summaries near the 8th of each month, and each is available by clicking the link below:
https://guyonclimate.com/category/record-scoreboard-climatological-reviews
I’m repeating this mantra every month:
July 2024 using 1901-2000 mean data got ranked by the National Center for Environmental Information for the lower 48 states as 11th warmest or 120th coolest since records began being kept in 1895 at +2.11°F(1.17°C) above average.
The above data was from:
https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cag/national/rankings
July was out very hot relative to temperature averages for the majority of U.S. states. Most reports of record heat came from the Southwest, south-central states, Northeast, and Florida throughout the month. Most reports of record chill came from the Midwest throughout the month. California had its hottest July on record.
You can check out record totals for yourself on my NCEI record archives:
NCEI Record Count Archive – Guy On Climate
Here are my two U.S. Daily Record Scoreboards updated through 8/08/2024 (data compiled from the following NCEI site):
https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cdo-web/datatools/records
I’m also keeping tabs on record report totals to verify a scientific study I helped to complete in the decade of the 2000s. We’ll eventually see how skewed ratios of record warm to cold reports get by the year 2100, which the study mentions as 50-1 for DHMX vs. DLMN:
Brand new for 2024: I’ve started to add NCEI anomalies (F° departure from 1901-2000 data) on my record scoreboards. I’d like these record scoreboards to be a quick and dirty reference tool and a template for future NCEI record site graphics.
DHMX= Daily High Max Reports. DLMN= Daily Low Min Reports. DHMN= Daily High Min Reports. DLMX=Daily Low Max Reports.
Bold red, blue, or purple colored months, such as December 2023 and June 2021, that have ratios of >10 to 1 daily warm low records or <1 to 10 daily warm to low records are either historically hot or cold, most of which have made news. NCEI rankings are for the lower 48 states with the warmest ranking since 1895 of average temperatures being 130 and 1 being the coldest as of 2024. Blue colors represent cold months and red warm. Those months and years with counts close to a 1 to 1 ratio of highs to lows are colored black. All-time record hottest or coldest months and years are boldly colored in purple. NCDC rankings have been color coded (under tabs in each file) such that values of 54 to 74 are black representing neutral months or years (+ or – 10 from the average ranking of 64).
Totals are record reports for the entire United States including all territories minus those from Alaska. I’ve subtracted those from Alaska to get a better representation of what has occurred across the lower 48 states in association with lower 48 state rankings.
July 2024 had approximately a 41 to 5 ratio of record DHMX to DLMN individual record counts, so the color I used for that month was red on the top chart.
July 2024 had approximately a 57 to 7 ratio of record DHMN to DLMX individual record counts, so the color I used for that month was red on the bottom chart.
Due to climate change, we are seeing fewer blue colors on these Record Scoreboards with time.
The average temperature lower 48 state ranking for July 2024 was 120, which was colored red since it was warmer than average.
I color rankings of +10 to -10 from the average ranking for the lower 48 states of 65 black, indicating that these are near average temperature wise. The top warmest ranking for 2024 would be 130 since rankings began in 1895.
We are seeing that August 2024 has been above average for most of the country so far with record ratios exceeding 10 to 1 for DHMX vs DLMN and DHMN vs DLMX datasets. Meteorological models forecast a very hot month ahead for most of the West, but the eastern 2/3rds of the nation should see a reprieve from summer heat. The depicted better than 10-1 ratios through 8/08/2024 should be much lass be the end of the month due to cool air masses moving through the Upper Midwest. August 2024 should be above average for the lower 48 states as a whole, but probably will be the coolest of the three Summer 2024 months relative to average.
Interestingly, overall ratios for 2024 are now higher than historic yearly ratios for the 2020s as shown here…which is no surprise given how hot the globe is coming off an El Niño sea surface pattern:
Here is much more detailed climatology for July 2024 as complied by NOAA:
Assessing the U.S. Climate in July 2024
Record precipitation, tornadoes, hurricanes, and wildfires impacted the U.S.; four new billion-dollar weather and climate disasters were confirmed in July
Courtesy of Canva Photos
Published
August 8, 2024
Related Links
July 2024 U.S. Climate Report (Available August 13, 2024)
National Temperature and Precipitation Maps
Climatological Rankings Explained
Key Points:
- The average temperature of the contiguous U.S. in July was 75.7°F, 2.1°F above average, ranking 11th warmest in the 130-year record.
- The Park Fire is the fourth-largest wildfire in California history as of August 6; beginning on July 24, it burned approximately 401,000 acres and destroyed over 560 structures.
- On July 15, a derecho that spawned 32 tornadoes broke the Chicago-area record for most tornadoes in a day.
- On July 1, Beryl became the earliest Category 5 hurricane and the second Category 5 on record during the month of July in the Atlantic Ocean.
- Alaska had its If you like these posts and my work on record temperature ratios, please contribute via my PayPal widget on this site. Thanks in advance for any support.
- Four new Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters were confirmed in July. The year-to-date total currently stands at 19 disasters.
Other Highlights:
Temperature
July temperatures were above average to record warm across much of the western and eastern contiguous U.S.: California and New Hampshire each had their warmest July on record with 19 additional states seeing their top 10 warmest July on record.
The Alaska statewide July temperature was 52.8°F, 0.1°F above the long-term average, ranking in the middle third of the 100-year period of record for the state. Near-average temperatures were observed throughout most of the state, with above-average temperatures observed across much of the Northeast Gulf, Aleutians and South Panhandle.
For the January–July period, the average contiguous U.S. temperature was 54.5°F, 3.2°F above average, ranking second warmest on record. Temperatures were above average across nearly all of the contiguous U.S., while record-warm temperatures were observed in parts of the Northeast, Great Lakes, southern Plains and Mid-Atlantic. New Hampshire and Vermont both saw their warmest January–July period on record. An additional 25 states had a top-five warmest year-to-date period. All states ranked in the warmest third of the historical record during this seven-month period.
The Alaska January–July temperature was 28.6°F, 2.8°F above the long-term average, ranking in the warmest third of the historical record for the state—much of the state was warmer than average while temperatures were near average across parts of the Panhandle.
Precipitation
July precipitation for the contiguous U.S. was 3.04 inches, 0.26 inch above average, ranking in the wettest third of the historical record. Precipitation was below average across much of the West and Rockies, eastern parts of the Ohio Valley to the Mid-Atlantic, southern Florida and across portions of the Plains. West Virginia had its eighth-driest July on record. Conversely, precipitation was above average across much of the South, Southeast, Midwest, Great Lakes and northern New England. Illinois had its seventh wettest July, while North Carolina had its eighth wettest.
Alaska’s average monthly precipitation ranked wettest in the historical record. Much of the state was wetter than average for the month of July, with the Central Interior having its wettest July on record and the North Slope, West Coast and Northeast Interior each experiencing their second wettest July.
The January–July precipitation total for the contiguous U.S. was 20.44 inches, 2.36 inches above average, ranking 11th wettest in the 130-year record. Precipitation was above average across a large portion of the Upper Midwest, Northeast and Deep South, with Rhode Island, Minnesota and Wisconsin each ranking second wettest. Conversely, precipitation was below average across parts of the Northwest, northern Plains and west Texas during the January–July period.
The January–July precipitation for Alaska ranked in the wettest third of the 100-year record, with below-average precipitation observed across parts of the Cook Inlet, Aleutians and South Panhandle regions, near-average precipitation in the Northeast, Central and Southeast Interior regions and above-average precipitation observed across the remaining climate divisions.
Billion-Dollar Disasters
Four new billion-dollar weather and climate disasters were confirmed in July 2024, including one severe weather event that impacted the southern U.S. in mid-May, New Mexico wildfires during June and July, one severe weather event that impacted the central and northeastern U.S. (June 24–26) and Hurricane Beryl (July 8–9).
There have been 19 confirmed weather and climate disaster events this year, which is second only to 2023 for the highest amount for the first seven months of the year, each with losses exceeding $1 billion. These disasters consisted of 15 severe storm events, one tropical cyclone event, one wildfire event and two winter storms. The total cost of these events exceeds $49.6 billion, and they have resulted in at least 149 fatalities.
The U.S. has sustained 395 separate weather and climate disasters since 1980 where overall damages/costs reached or exceeded $1 billion (including CPI adjustment to 2024). The total cost of these 395 events exceeds $2.770 trillion.
Other Notable Events
On July 2–3, the Thompson Fire caused over 13,000 people to evacuate around Oroville, California.
Hurricane Beryl made landfall near Matagorda, Texas on July 8, causing significant damage, numerous power outages and eight fatalities.
The Shreveport NWS issued 67 tornado warnings, the most in a single day on July 8 for this office, due to the remnants of Hurricane Beryl.
On July 17, Washington D.C. hit 101ºF, tying a record for the longest streak of temperatures above 100ºF with four consecutive days.
An early July heat wave brought all-time record-breaking temperatures to portions of the West during July:
- Palm Springs, California: 124ºF on July 5
- Las Vegas, Nevada: 120ºF on July 7
- Redding, California: 119ºF on July 6
- Barstow, California: 118ºF on July 7 and 8
- Palmdale, California: 115ºF on July 6
Drought
According to the July 30 U.S. Drought Monitor report, about 20% of the contiguous U.S. was in drought, up a little over 1% from the end of June. Drought or abnormally dry conditions expanded or intensified this month across much of the West and Hawaii, and parts of the Central and Northern Plains, the Ohio Valley, the central Appalachians, Tennessee and the Northeast. Drought contracted or was reduced in intensity across much of the Southeast, western portions of the Ohio Valley and parts of Arkansas and Texas.
Monthly Outlook
Above-average temperatures are favored to impact areas across the western and southeastern portions of the U.S. in August, while below-average precipitation is likely to occur in the Northwest and south-central Plains. Drought is likely to persist in the Northwest, Central Plains and Hawaii. Visit the Climate Prediction Center’s Official 30-Day Forecasts and U.S. Monthly Drought Outlook website for more details.
Significant wildland fire potential for August is above normal across portions of the West, Southern Plains and Hawaii. For additional information on wildland fire potential, visit the National Interagency Fire Center’s One-Month Wildland Fire Outlook
This monthly summary from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information is part of the suite of climate services NOAA provides to government, business, academia and the public to support informed decision-making. For more detailed climate information, check out our comprehensive July 2024 U.S. Climate Report scheduled for release on August 13, 2024. For additional information on the statistics provided here, visit the Climate at a Glance and National Maps webpages.
Here are more “ETs” recorded from around the planet the last couple of days, their consequences, and some extreme temperature outlooks, as well as any extreme precipitation reports:
Here is more new July 2024 climatology (More can be found on each prior daily post during August):
Here is More Climate News from Thursday:
(As usual, this will be a fluid post in which more information gets added during the day as it crosses my radar, crediting all who have put it on-line. Items will be archived on this site for posterity. In most instances click on the pictures of each tweet to see each article. The most noteworthy items will be listed first.)