PBS Newshour profiles a number of Americans who are struggling to pay bills as their air-conditioning demands skyrocket.
Although there will be more brutal heat to come, summer is over and fall is here, according to the climatological calendar. June through August will enter the record books as abnormally hot for a considerable portion of the Lower 48 states.
Large parts of the western United States notched their hottest summer on record, including Phoenix and Las Vegas. Hot weather frequently visited both coasts and scorched the northern and southern borders.
Below, we recap six of the most notable aspects of yet another historically hot summer in the United States.
Intense heat domes sprawled across portions of the nation every week.
The most memorable heat wave ramped up around Independence Dayin the West and brought all-time highs on multiple days, including in Las Vegas and Redding, Calif. It featured nine days in a row with highs of at least 120 degrees in the Southwest, with a maximum of 129 on July 7 in Death Valley, Calif. — among the hottest days ever observed at the world’s hot spot.
All-time highs were set in more than 250 locations across the Lower 48 states. Some of the most noteworthy all-time highs are listed below:
- 124 in Palm Springs, Calif., on July 5
- 120 in Las Vegas on July 7
- 119 in Redding on July 6
- 117 in Ukiah, Calif., on July 6
- 115 in Palmdale and Lancaster, Calif., on July 7 and July 6
- 114 in Fresno, Calif., July 7
- 106 in Ogden, Utah, on July 12
Outside of the West, there were plenty more:
- 115 in Medicine Lodge, Kan., on Aug. 24
- 113 in Abilene, Tex., on Aug. 21
- 109 in Williston, N.D., on July 25
- 106 in Raleigh, N.C., on July 5
- 102 in Hagerstown, Md., on July 16
- 96 in Caribou, Maine, on June 19
Soooo close. It should, of course, be #HeatwaveKoch, with future names like #HeatwaveRexTillerson, #HeatwaveExxon, #HeatwaveSaudis, etc.