This Summer May Be Hottest on Record in the South

(Aug. 21) -- The Deep South is certainly not known for its comfortable summer weather, but the heat and humidity so far this summer have been unrelenting and extreme. In fact, this summer might be the hottest on record in some cities, including Birmingham, Ala.

June and July combined were the hottest on record for the largest city in Alabama, and with eight days with a high temperature of at least 100 degrees so far in August, breaking the all-time record seems likely.

It's not just the intensity of the heat, which has resulted in some individual day records, both in terms of high temperatures and highest minimum temperatures; it's also the persistence. Saturday was the 48th consecutive day with a high temperature of at least 90 degrees -- the longest such streak on record, and highs this week in the 90s will ensure that the streak will continue into the 50s. The last time the temperature did not reach 90 degrees was on July 4.

While hot weather has been the norm in the eastern half of the country this summer (much of the West has been cooler than normal), most cities have had at least brief breaks from the heat. Since the Fourth of July, high temperatures have been as low as 76 in New York City, 80 in Washington, D.C., 78 in Chicago, and even 83 in St. Louis. Even hot and humid Houston has had a few days with highs in the 80s while Birmingham sweltered with high temperatures between 90 and 102 degrees.

Temperatures have averaged at least four degrees above normal for the past three months in a large portion of the mid- and deep-south, including portions of eastern Missouri, southern Illinois, southern Indiana, western Arkansas, much of Tennessee, and northern portions of Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia.

(Image courtesy of NOAA)

The heat has been combined with extreme humidity on most days. The heat index, an estimate of how hot it feels when both air temperature and humidity are taken into consideration, topped 120 degrees in parts of the region earlier this month. In other words, it's felt as hot as it's been in Death Valley, California, on the most extreme days.

The long-range forecast from the Climate Prediction Center -- through September -- is for a continuation of hotter-than-normal weather across this region.

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This Summer May Be Hottest on Record in South

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