Summers have been about the same and winters are less cold. NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the federal government temperature record keeper, tells us.
There are 1,219 temperature locations around the United States.
The long term temperature trends have been mildly warmer
This graph shows the monthly average temperature across the US. You can see the warmest and coolest months for the last 125 years. Since 1978, winters are warmer.
Source of graph: Climate at a Glance | National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) (noaa.gov)
Some stations have issues, the locations were changed. When some were installed 50 or 125 years ago. They were in the rural countryside. Now they are in built up cities. There is a documented urban heat island effect. Which means places where people live are about .5° F warmer than the countryside.
There is a weather station at the Miami Airport. It was installed in 1948. It’s been moved several times. I wonder if being in a busy airport had an affect on temperature. Making the records warmer or cooler?
Here is the link to the Miami Airport station where you can find out more details. https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cdo-web/datasets/GHCND/stations/GHCND:USW00012839/detail
Has the long term temperature trend been hotter?
The next graph is the hottest day each month.
Notice the number of months that break 90° F. These are averages for all 1,219 stations across the country. Some places are warmer, and some are cooler. It is very normal to have temperature differences across the country and the world. Climate changes and so does the temperature.
If you look up your state, depending on if you are in a northern or southern state, you will get different results. Something to think about, how can temperature and climate influence someone’s behavior.
The source for this graph. https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cag/national/time-series/110/tmax/all/12/1895-2020?base_prd=true&begbaseyear=1895&endbaseyear=2020&trend=true&trend_base=100&begtrendyear=1895&endtrendyear=2020&filter=true&filterType=binomial
Another way to look at the temperature trend, making it look warmer = global warming?
This is another way to look at the same information, in a different way. This chart is often used when explaining global warming. It is the average annual temperature. It looks like we are getting hotter; in fact, we are having fewer cold winters and longer springs and falls.
The source for this information. https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cag/national/time-series/110/tavg/ann/12/1895-2020?base_prd=true&begbaseyear=1895&endbaseyear=2020&trend=true&trend_base=100&begtrendyear=1895&endtrendyear=2020&filter=true&filterType=binomial
The hottest year on record is supposed to be 1936. It also has the hottest day ever recorded, in Death Valley CA. That is a post for another day.
We are getting record crop yields in most areas of earth. Worldwide harvests are up about 30% and the earth is greening. Both are topics for future posts.
Think about the facts and have some fun with them.
Remember, facts are your friends, folks!
