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Summer 2016 Ranks Among Top 3 Hottest In Pennsylvania History

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - The numbers are now in and this summer was one of the hottest three summers ever (June-August) for the state of Pennsylvania.

Three out of the four hottest summers on record, since 1870, have occurred over the last 12 years, according to the National Center for Environmental Information.  This summer's average temperature (average state high, plus state low divided by 2) was 71.3 degrees.  Just 0.2 degrees shy of the record set back in 2005.

average-temp
(Photo Courtesy: NOAA)

Five of the top ten warmest summers on record in Pennsylvania have occurred since 2000.

August was the hottest month ever recorded across the state.  While Pittsburgh saw our average highs in the top five ever for the month, it was a record setting month for the eastern side of the state.

Overall, the state average temperature for the month was 73.5 degrees which is 5.1 degrees warmer than average.

divisional-temp
(Photo Courtesy: NOAA)

There were a couple of things that really stand out to KDKA-TV Meteorologist Ron Smiley when looking at the historical temperatures for Pennsylvania summers.

The trend line going up for Pennsylvania is troubling, but more troubling is the shrinking number of summer periods that we spend at or below the historical average.  Only once since 1985 have we seen summer temps dropping below 67 degrees.

This is something we used to do once every five years.  Also, it is surprising that we aren't seeing temperatures near the historic averages as often anymore and we are seeing larger sweeps from warm to cool every year.

3-month
(Photo Courtesy: NOAA)

So, going into the fall what should we expect?

Temperatures are expected to continue to run warm according to the Federal Climate Prediction Center.

The best chance for "warmer than normal weather" will be in the northeast corner of the state.

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