In Vermont 2020 Was Second Hottest Year; Whole Decade Hot

A small thunderstorm forms southwest of St. Albans,
Vermont on a hot, humid summer evening in 2020.
The year was the second hottest on record in Burlington,
and July was the hottest on record. 

 In Burlington, Vermont at least, the year 2020 will go down as the second hottest year on record. 

The average temperature for the year was  49.4 degrees. The only year that was hotter was 2012, which came in at a scorching (for Vermont) 49.9 degrees. 

Records for Burlington go all the way back to the 1880s, but the eight hottest years have all occurred since 1998. The four warmest years have all been since 2012.  

That's quite a streak.  Climate change, anyone?

The heat was consistent through the year in Vermont. In Burlington, the only month in 2020 that was cooler than average was April, which was 1.4 degrees below normal. 

The year 2020 brought us the hottest July on record (76.8 degrees), the ninth warmest March (37.3 degrees) the third hottest November (43.3 degrees) and the sixth warmest December (31.3 degrees).

This past year bucked one trend we've been noticing. It's generally been getting wetter over the past few decades in Vermont.  Five of the top 10 wettest years have been since 1998. 

But 2020 was dry.  Burlington accumulated 31.38 inches of rain and melted snow. That's 5.44 inches below averages. We weren't in the top 10 list of dry years, but it was a bit thirsty. 

Other than the warm temperatures, we in Vermont didn't see a lot of the extremes we have had in recent years, but they were there. 

Some examples:

1. This was the first May in which Burlington had both measurable snow and temperatures above 90 degrees. 

During a sharp cold wave on Mother's Day weekend, Burlington eeked out 0.1 inches of snow.  Other towns in Vermont had several inches. 

On May 27, the temperature soared to 95 degrees in Burlington, setting a new all-time high temperature for the month of May. 

Smoke and haze aloft obscures the sun over South 
Burlington, Vermont in summer. Signs of climate
change: The smoke from western wildfires, and
a decade in Vermont with the hottest years
on recor. 

2. Hot days: After the two 90 degree days in May, Burlington would go on to total 20 days with 90 degree readings. That's the most since 1988.  

Burlington also had the fewest days of any year with temperatures reaching the single digits. There were only 16 such days in 2020.

3. Tropical Storm Isaias on August 4 became a rare such storm to move directly over Vermont. It was still characterized as a tropical storm when it was over Rutland late that day. 

The tropical storm dumped one to five inches of rain, mostly on western Vermont. However, it had been dry before that, so there was little flooding.

Strong winds on the east side of Isaias caused power outages in eastern Vermont. 

4. Tropical storm Isaias prompted tornado watches in southern Vermont.  That was one of three tornado watches to be in effect in Vermont in 2020.  Thankfully, no tornadoes are known to have touched down.

Still, in this topsy turvy year, Vermont had tornado watches in 2020 than most of South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas and western Oklahoma, the heart of tornado alley. 

5. This was one of the worst years in American history for wildfires.  No big wildfires occurred in Vermont, but the sun in the Green Mountain state in August, September and October was often dimmed by smoke and haze aloft from those western fires. 

6. November in Vermont is known for its chill gloom and overcast. However, the first part of the month was delightfully sunny and warm.  Numerous record highs in Vermont were reported under mostly clear skies from November 6 to 10. Burlington had four consecutive days in the 70s, the most such readings on record for Vermont. 

7. An epic snowstorm struck mostly the southern third of Vermont on December 16-17.  Pending verification,   42 inches in Peru, Vermont is likely the heaviest 24 hour snow on record in Vermont. The snow came down incredibly heavy, with reports of 18 inches of snow in six hours or less. The storm largely missed northern Vermont. 

8. Vermont experienced its warmest Christmas on record. Burlington had a record high of 65 degrees. At 8 a.m. Christmas morning, Burlington was at 64 degrees. This made it at that hour the warmest place in the contiguous Lower 48 United States.  The warmth, combined with rain, caused some flooding in southern Vermont as the deep snow cover from the earlier storm rapidly melted.