NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center has some interesting graphics at their State of the Climate page, for any given month. Here, for instance, are the statewide rankings for temperatures this past calendar summer (JJA).



The numbers indicate the rank for historic temperatures - 118 means the highest temperatures in the 118 years of records, 117 means the second highest, etc.

This one is interesting for the benign white “near normals” seen for the US southeast. I’d already written about this for the Athens area. Kind of neat to see it ranked this way.

They also have the rankings for the US as a whole, regional, and divisional. There are several choices for time span. There is a set for precipitation and one for temperatures. Here’s the year to date, again for temperatures:



Look at all those 118s. Quite a bit different from the top picture! When you consider that our summer was “near normal,” you begin to get an idea of just how unusually warm Jan-May was for us.

You also realize how the country’s midsection has been suffering all year.