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Terence Braggs,4, cools off in a sprinkler at Zilker Park on June 20, 2019, during one of Austin’s warmest summers on record. The city’s hottest summers on record have all occurred within the past two decades.<\/p>\n
RICARDO B. BRAZZIELL\/\/AMERICAN-STATESMAN]<\/p>\n
If you\u2019ve lived in Austin long enough, chances are you\u2019ve heard (or said) the phrase, \u201cAustin weather<\/a> just isn\u2019t the same anymore.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n While it may sound like simple nostalgia, five decades of weather data show there is truth behind the sentiment, from hotter summers<\/a> and warmer nights to more extreme weather events and fewer cold outbreaks.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Hotter summers<\/p>\n It\u2019s not your imagination\u00a0\u2014 summers in Austin have steadily grown hotter over the years. According to data compiled by the nonprofit climate research group Climate Central<\/a>, the number of above-normal summer temperature days has increased by 50 days, while Austin\u2019s average summer temperature has climbed five degrees.<\/p>\n In fact, the hottest summers on record have all occurred within the past two decades. Since 2009, several summers in Austin have had average temperatures between 88 and 89 degrees during meteorological summer, which spans June through August. That figure represents the combined average of both overnight lows and daytime highs.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n However, the warming trend extends far beyond Texas. According to an analysis by Climate Central, 97% of the 242 United States cities studied have experienced warmer summers, with average summer temperatures increasing by about 2.6 degrees.<\/p>\n About 75% of the country has seen warmer summers, with some locations, especially in Texas and the desert Southwest, experiencing temperature increases of up to 5 degrees.<\/p>\n Climate Central<\/p>\n More 100-degree days<\/p>\n Austin\u2019s history of triple-digit heat shows a clear warming trend over time. From when record-keeping began in 1898 until 2024, the long-term average of 100 degrees days was 16 days per year. However, that number has increased significantly and the National Weather Service\u2019s current climate normals period of 1991 through 2020, Austin averages 37 triple-digit days.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Recent summers have reflected that trend, with 32 days of 100-degree heat recorded in 2024 and an intense 80 days in 2023. But, during the historic drought and heat wave of 2011, when Austin endured a staggering 90 days with temperatures at or above 100 degrees which is the record.\u00a0<\/p>\n HOT SUMMER: What day in Austin is statistically the hottest?<\/a><\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n More intense rainfall events<\/p>\n Living in Central Texas, we know that when it rains, it doesn\u2019t just pour\u2014it can come down in torrents, leading to significant flooding and unfortunately, we\u2019ve become accustomed to this feast-or-famine pattern of weather in Flash Flood Alley.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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