July Was (Somewhat Surprisingly) The World's 14th Consecutive Record Hottest Month

Very few places on Earth cooler than the 20th century
average through July, 2024.

Data came out this week that shows July was the 14th consecutive month that was the hottest on record for Planet Earth. 

The hottest July ranking was a bit of a surprise among experts. El Nino, which tends to boost global temperatures on top of the warmth of climate change,  has ended.  Chances were, at least according to the experts who watch these things, that July, 2024 would "only" be the second or third hottest.

But nope!  July was the hottest.

There are signs that this long streak of record hot months are ending. Global sea surface temperatures were only the second warmest on record. That ends a 15-month streak in which sea temperatures were record hot. 

Despite continued record heat waves around the world, it's questionable as to whether August will turn out to be another hottest month. It could be close.

After all, climate change sure isn't ending. 

And the last few months of the year could well end up being just a smidge cooler than the final months of 2023. The National Centers for Environmental Information says there's a 77 percent chance that 2024 will be the hottest year on record for Earth. There's a 100 percent chance it will score in the top five, as you might expect.  

Just under 14 percent of the Earth's surface had a record hot month, which is pretty impressive.

Once again, it was hard to find places on Earth that were cooler than what was average in the 20th century. The only places I could find that were ever so slightly chilly were southern South America, a spot west of the Korean Peninsula, another tiny spot between Alaska and Russia, and a small area in the central United States.  

The trend toward warmer months started decades ago, thanks to the release of greenhouse gases from fossil fuels that have made the world all-too toasty. If you are under the age of 48, you have never seen a July on Earth that was at least a little cooler than the 20th century average. 

UNITED STATES

The western and eastern United States were very
hot in July, 2024, but the middle of the nation
caught a break. 

In the United States, July turned out to be just the 11th hottest on record. California and New Hampshire had their hottest July on record. Another 18 states, including Vermont had one of their top ten hottest Julys. 

And as I wrote the other day, many cities on the West Coast and some in the East also had a record hot July.  

But the areas in the middle of the nation were cooler, partly offsetting the overall warmth in the United States. 

Nebraska, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana were actually a bit cooler than average. They got a break from what was widely expected to be a hot July in that region. 

DISASTERS

Weather and climate disasters costing at least $1 billion in the United States continue to pile up. Four more such calamities were added to the list. They include Hurricane Beryl in Texas (no word if subsequent floods in Vermont and elsewhere in the Northeast also made the cut); New Mexico wildfires in June and July, and hail storms centered in and around Colorado on May 31-June 1. 

We now have a total of 19 weather and climate disasters so far in 2024 that cost at least $1 billion. 

This type of mega-expensive disaster is getting more common. The average annual of inflation-adjusted yearly billion dollar disasters between 1980 and 2023 is 8.5.  The average number in the most recent five years, i.e. 2019 to 2023 was 20.4 such events, says the National Centers for Environmental Information. 

It's pretty much a lock, then, that 2024 will have an above average number of these calamities. We don't know yet if Hurricane Debby cost $1 billion. Or if the massive Park Fire in California or other big wildfires burning out there will also cost more than $1 billion. 

Plus, hurricane season is still very young. Hurricanes making landfall in the United States tend to cause a lot of damage. (The latest hurricane, Ernesto, caused damage in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, but is expected to have little effect on mainland U.S.). 

Other than the western wildfires, there doesn't appear to be any mega-storms or climate disasters on the horizon in the United States for at least the next few days. But the way things are going, you never know.