The contiguous United States experienced its hottest summer in 132 years of record-keeping in 2026, according to the country’s climate agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The record is another sign of a warming trend linked to human-caused climate change.
Meteorological summer, which spans from June through August, saw an average temperature of 23.6°C. According to NOAA, this figure is 0.2°C higher than the previous records set in 1936 and 2021. Overall, four of the five hottest summers on record have occurred in the last five years, with 2022 and 2024 ranking fourth and fifth, respectively.
Causes and consequences of temperature records
The primary driver of human-caused climate change is the burning of fossil fuels. For comparison, the hot summers of the 1930s, known as the “Dust Bowl summers,” were caused by a combination of drought, extreme heat, and over-plowing of the Great Plains.
August 2026 was also the warmest since records began in 1895, with an average temperature of 24.2°C. Most of the United States saw temperatures well above average. Meanwhile, conditions near the norm were observed only in parts of the Northern Plains and the Midwest, NOAA reported.
These records come during a strengthening El Niño event, which is forecast to be the most intense in decades and has already begun causing extreme weather worldwide. El Niño is expected to contribute to further temperature records in 2027 and increases the likelihood that 2026 will become the hottest year on record, surpassing 2024.
Source: Clarín
