June 1st is not just the start of Hurricane Season, but also the start of Meteorological Summer.
While the calendar says the “Summer Solstice” isn’t until June 20th, meteorologists consider summer to be June, July and August.
Last summer was the hottest on record for both Earth and for South Florida. With ocean temps already scorching and at levels never before seen this early in the season, predictions for another record-setting summer are already being discussed.
Our friends at Climate Central have looked at the summer numbers going back to 1970. Since 1970, Miami has seen an average of forty-three additional above-normal days in the summer, with average temperatures about 2.5° warmer.
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Where we feel this the most is with our morning low temperatures. The ocean temperature and the higher humidity make it very difficult for temperatures to cool off at night, which means we are likely to have extended heat waves.
Since 1970, our average low temperature in Miami is 1.7° warmer, while the country is up 2.6°.
The entire country is warmer than in 1970, but the areas that have seen the biggest increase in summer temperatures are Philadelphia, South Jersey, the Delmarva Peninsula up north, parts of Texas and New Mexico out west.
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June 2nd is Heat Action Day, meant to raise awareness of the dangers of extreme heat and talk about ways to stay safe. For more information on Heat Action Day, click here.
This is also where you can read a brand-new study that took a look back at eleven record-setting months from June 2023 through April 2024. During this period, the study found seventy-six extreme heat waves in ninety countries.
It also explains how 78% of the US population experienced at least thirty-one extreme heat days that were twice as likely because of human-caused climate change, and across the planet, climate change has led to twenty-six additional extreme heat days.
If you want to learn more about climate change and its solutions, we have an entire “Climate In Crisis” section on NBC6.com and the NBC6 app.
