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Our Curious Coast: Adaptation and Resilience

heat

A photo of a tree down along the shores of Lake Norman after the August 7 tornado event

Sep 6, 2023

August Saw Extreme Heat and Damaging Storms

Hot weather carried over into August, and also featured many dry days until Idalia’s arrival. When we did have rain, it often came from severe and damaging thunderstorms throughout the month. Heat Holds Steady After summer started in earnest in July, it hit high gear in August with persistent heat throughout the month. The National…
A photo of a sunflower field in at Dorothea Dix Park in Raleigh

Aug 2, 2023

July Sizzles, With a Severe Weather Twist

Summer finally set in last month with the arrival of above-normal temperatures. Much of the state was on the dry side, but thunderstorms brought locally heavy rain and even severe weather. Summer Heat Takes Hold Our climatological hottest month of the year lived up to that billing, with a preliminary statewide average temperature of 78.7°F…
A photo of flowers blooming from February 23

Mar 2, 2023

February Springs Forward with Unseasonable Warmth

Month-long warmth in February set local temperature records, but the weather cooperated for a night of outdoor hockey. Meanwhile, early-month rains washed away drought in North Carolina. We also preview winter’s potential return in March. A Spring Sensation Persistent and unprecedented warmth in the past month made it one of our warmest Februarys ever. According…
A photo of the sun behind the clouds in Surry County

Nov 10, 2022

Heat and Air Quality in 2022: Temperatures, Ozone Peaked in June

The foliage reaching its final form and the first freeze of the season – not to mention the calendar showing it’s now November – are all sure signs that the summer is finished. This summer in North Carolina got off to a hot start but wrapped up right on time, at least by astronomical accounting.…
A photo of fall leaf colors at Linville Peak on Grandfather Mountain

Oct 11, 2022

September Felt Like Summer to Start, then Fall at the Finish

September’s precipitation was dominated by Hurricane Ian, while fall-like temperatures accompanied the official season change. That has set us up for a timely leaf color transition this year. Ian Stamps Out Re-Emerging Drought A stretch of dry weather through most of September abruptly ended with a tropical torrent on the last day of the month.…
A photo of mist in the Mountains on an early August morning

Sep 7, 2022

Drought Disappears in August, Despite the Tropical Lull

Bookended by heat, August wrapped up a warm summer statewide, while scattered showers brought our ongoing drought to an end. We also turn to the tropics and review a rare storm-free August. A Warm Summer Wraps Up A hot start and end to August were balanced by cooler mid-month weather, but it was still a…
A photo of farmers threshing wheat in Stanly County

Aug 16, 2022

Climate Curiosities: When Was Our Warmest Hour?

The dog days were downright dreadful this year, as part of an early-starting summer that rarely offered much relief, at least until last weekend. Statewide, this June and July combined were our 12th-warmest beginning to summer since 1895, and the warmest since 2016. The heat wasn’t just isolated here in North Carolina. To the west,…
A photo of lightning damage to a roadway in Oakboro, NC

Aug 3, 2022

A Warm, Wet July Extends Our Steamy Summer

The heat held on in July, joined by locally heavy rainfall that improved drought conditions. We also review recent weather using the new Almanac feature in our Station Scout tool. The Peak of Summer Heat Climatologically speaking, July is our hottest month of the year, and last month indeed saw the temperatures dialed up, even…
An aerial photo of a bridge over water in eastern North Carolina

Jul 21, 2022

Our Curious Coast: Adaptation and Resilience

If this blog post series so far has taught us anything, it’s that in North Carolina’s Coastal Plain, the land has always been in a delicate dance with water, from the sea’s retreat millions of years ago through the carving and shifting of our coastal rivers over hundreds of thousands of years to the erosion…