TAMPA, Fla. — From the shores of Miami to the Pacific Northwest, the United States baked in the hottest June ever recorded this year, NOAA said Friday.
According to NOAA data, the average June temperature across the contiguous U.S. was 72.6 degrees, 4.2 degrees above average, surpassing the record set in 2016 by nearly a full degree. Eight U.S. states saw their hottest June on record including Arizona, California, Idaho, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Utah. Six other states saw their second-hottest June ever.
NOAA said that so far in 2021, the average temperature has been 49.3 degrees, 1.7 degrees above the 20th-century average. And the rapidly changing climate also cost the United States billions of dollars in damages this year.
So far in 2021, the U.S. experienced eight weather and climate disasters that had losses greater than $1 billion including four severe thunderstorm events; two flooding events; one winter storm with a deep freeze; and 1 heat wave-influenced drought, NOAA said. The cost of the combined eight events came to nearly $30 billion in the first six months of 2021.
According to NOAA data, the costliest event in 2021 was the February 10-19 winter storm that incurred direct losses of approximately $20 billion. The winter storm event included the near complete collapse of the Texas electric grid among other problems it caused.
Over the last 41 years, as the climate has continued to warm, the U.S. has experienced 298 weather and climate disasters that reached/exceeded $1 billion. The total cost of those nearly 300 events reached nearly $2 trillion.
