{"id":852116,"date":"2026-08-12T02:36:35","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T02:36:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/852116\/"},"modified":"2026-08-12T02:36:35","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T02:36:35","slug":"the-united-states-sizzled-to-its-hottest-month-ever-in-july","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/852116\/","title":{"rendered":"The United States sizzled to its hottest month ever in July"},"content":{"rendered":"

July 2026 was the hottest month ever in the United States.<\/p>\n

The average temperature was 76.9 degrees Fahrenheit (24.9 degrees Celsius) for the contiguous US, which excludes Alaska, Hawaii and overseas territories.<\/p>\n

That was 3.3F above the 20th-century average and breaks the previous record for the hottest month, July 1936, which was 76.8F, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).<\/p>\n

Records go back to 1895.<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/p>\n

July’s heatwave fell as the US celebrated its 250th anniversary and hosted the soccer World Cup’s later stages. (AP:Jacquelyn Martin, File)<\/p>\n

The heat was so widespread that every one of the Lower 48 states was at least 1 degree Fahrenheit (nearly 0.6 degrees Celsius) warmer than the 20th century average, said Russ Vose, chief of monitoring at NOAA’s National Center for Environmental Information.<\/p>\n

What’s happening now is due to the burning of coal, oil and gas, scientists said.<\/p>\n

“Extremely high temperatures across the continental US this summer, along with intense drought and fire conditions, are absolutely consistent with the climate change signal,’ said Katharine Jacobs, a climate scientist at the University of Arizona.<\/p>\n

The biggest driver of the record heat was night-time lows that smashed the old mark for hottest minimums by 0.7 degrees, NOAA said.<\/p>\n

Hotter nights are a classic sign of human-caused climate change, according to scientists and several studies in peer-reviewed literature. NOAA’s calculation is based on averaging 24 hours of temperature, not just highs or lows.<\/p>\n

July 2026 began with a heat wave gripping much of the densely populated eastern United States, which fell as the country celebrated its 250th anniversary and hosted the soccer World Cup<\/a>‘s later stages.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A worker drinks water during extremely hot weather in July in Detroit. (AP: Paul Sancya, File)<\/p>\n

British Columbia wildfire doubles in size<\/p>\n

July also saw a large swathe of the US, from the Great Lakes to parts of the East Coast, enveloped in smoke from hundreds of wildfires burning in Canada, where Ontario experienced record temperatures.<\/p>\n

A separate wildfire in British Columbia’s wine country nearly doubled in size<\/a> over the weekend and forced the evacuation of thousands of people in the area.<\/p>\n

Wildfire forces evacuations in western Canada<\/a><\/p>\n

Thousands of people in British Columbia have been ordered to flee a fast-moving wildfire that nearly doubled in size overnight.<\/p>\n

Canada has experienced a hot summer this year, sparking fires in remote forests and other regions, leading to more than 4,600 fires burning 4 million hectares of land.<\/p>\n

Firefighters from Australia, Mexico, France and New Zealand have helped combat the fires.<\/p>\n

Officials said the Bald Range wildfire, which broke out on Friday, triggered the largest evacuation event in British Columbia so far this summer.<\/p>\n

More than 20,000 people across the province have been forced to leave their homes.<\/p>\n

Almost three-quarters of England now in drought<\/p>\n

Heat and drought have also fuelled wildfires across western Europe, with Spain and France<\/a> particularly hard hit in recent weeks.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A drone view shows parched parkland around the Clifton Observatory, with Clifton Suspension Bridge behind, Bristol. (Reuters: Toby Melville)<\/p>\n

Almost three-quarters of England is now in drought, the British government said on Monday.<\/p>\n

Most of the country, 71.3 per cent, is now experiencing a flash drought caused by a combination of very low rainfall and higher temperatures. That has risen since late July, when almost half the country was declared to be in drought.<\/p>\n

The latest update put 45 million people in a drought area and 27 million living under restrictions on water use.<\/p>\n

Britain is in the grip of its fifth heatwave this year and England and Wales have provisionally recorded their driest July in 190 years.<\/p>\n

Southeast England received just 1 per cent of its expected average rainfall.<\/p>\n

“We know how challenging this summer has been \u2026 We are stepping up our support including working to make it easier for farmers to build more on-site irrigation reservoirs,” Water Minister Emma Hardy said in the statement.<\/p>\n

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