Ask most anyone about the summer of 2014's weather and they'll probably remark how comfortable it was, even cool. This is most likely because there were so few 90-degree days, just six (normal is sixteen for June-July-August). However, the average temperature for meteorological summer (June 1 - Aug. 31) was 0.1 degree above average. (June was +1.0, July -0.4 and August -0.7). Compared to the previous four summers, however, this summer felt cool because those summers were on the torrid side (especially 2010, which was the hottest summer on record). And although the summer of 2014 was the coolest in five years, 2009 was much cooler, 2.3 degrees below average.
Average Summertime Temperatures |
(Meteorological Summer) |
|
|
|
|
Mean Temp |
Departure |
2014 |
74.4 |
+0.1 |
2013 |
75.7 |
+1.4 |
2012 |
75.6 |
+1.3 |
2011 |
76.0 |
+1.7 |
2010 |
77.8 |
+3.5 |
2009 |
72.0 |
-2.3 |
What distinguished this summer from the past five was that none of the three months this year had a wide variation from the average while the others had at least one month that varied significantly from the average.
Monthly Departures From Normal |
|
|
|
|
|
June |
July |
Aug |
2014 |
+1.0 |
-0.4 |
-0.7 |
2013 |
+1.2 |
+3.3 |
-0.6 |
2012 |
-0.4 |
+2.3 |
+1.5 |
2011 |
+1.1 |
+3.8 |
+0.2 |
2010 |
+3.5 |
+4.9 |
+2.4 |
2009 |
-3.7 |
-3.8 |
+0.6 |
|
|
|
|
And while there were no official heat waves (i.e., three days in a row with highs in the 90s) there were four three-day periods with highs of 87+, two each in July and August (and there were back-to-back 89 degree days in mid-June). Interestingly, while there were six days with highs in the 90s, the warmest daily mean temperature wasn't one of those days - it occurred on June 18 when the high/low was 89/76.
HOTTEST DAYS - SUMMER 2014 |
(Ranked by Daily Mean Temp) |
|
|
|
|
|
High |
Low |
Mean |
June 18 |
89 |
76 |
82.5 |
Aug 31 |
90 |
73 |
81.5 |
July 2 |
91 |
72 |
81.5 |
July 8 |
91 |
71 |
81.0 |
July 7 |
90 |
72 |
81.0 |
Aug 5 |
90 |
71 |
80.5 |
July 1 |
89 |
72 |
80.5 |
Aug 27 |
90 |
70 |
80.0 |
July 23 |
88 |
72 |
80.0 |
June 17 |
89 |
71 |
80.0 |
Finally, there were 29 days with lows in the 70s (an average summer has 33), with all but two of them between 70-72 degrees. The outliers were June 18 when the low was 76 and the last day of August when the low was 73.