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Colorado experienced its third warmest summer on record

Posted at 11:11 AM, Sep 26, 2018
and last updated 2018-11-14 17:52:23-05

According to data gathered from the National Climate Data Center, Colorado just went through its third hottest summer on record.

3rd Warmest Summer
Colorado had the 3rd warmest summer on record, data through Sep. supports this

The highlighted box shows, from a period of 124 years, this was the 122nd warmest year in Colorado, or third warmest ever.

Colorado Average Temp
Average temperatures were at record warmth for much of the western edge of CO

If you look at this map of the average temperature of Colorado from June through August, more than half of the state fell within the top 10% of the warmest summer temperatures on record.

What’s worse is that much of the western half of Colorado, much of which covered in lush forest land, saw record warm temps during this three month stretch.

Average Temperature
Western Colorado had the most widespread above average temperatures

This summer actually tied as the 4th warmest on record for the United States. Looking at the map, the biggest heat this season stretched from California through the four corners region and down into Texas.

3 Month Precip
Central and western Colorado saw much below average and record driest precip

Heavy drought was the primary driver of our heat this year and of course, lead to the very active fire season. Looking at the map of precipitation through the bulk of summer, barely any of Colorado saw above average rainfall, with central and western Colorado mostly coming in much below average.