NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY

AUGUST 2026

2-8: The nation experienced the hottest July (and month) on record, based on average temperature, many areas of the country experienced adversely hot, dry weather during the first full week of August. Monsoon-related showers were temporarily blocked from entering the U.S., leading to extreme heat and mostly dry conditions across the nation’s southwestern quadrant. Dry weather also prevailed in the Northwest, where dozens of wildfires remained active, despite a brief cooling trend. Difficult conditions also persisted on the Plains, where widespread showers were limited to parts of Kansas and Nebraska. Although cooler weather arrived on the northern Plains, ongoing heat on the southern Plains.

Midwestern temperatures remained below stressful thresholds for corn and soybeans, while much-needed rainfall dampened portions of the western Corn Belt. Weekly temperatures averaged as much as 5°F below normal in parts of the western Corn Belt and on the northern High Plains. Conversely, readings averaged at least 5°F above normal in numerous locations from California to the southern Rockies, as well as the northern panhandle of Texas and neighboring areas. As August began, heat gripped much of the western half of the U.S. August 2 featured monthly record highs in locations such as Scottsbluff, NE (107°F), and Casper, WY (103°F). Chadron, NE (109°F) tied a monthly record originally set on August 5, 2022. Meanwhile in the Desert Southwest, record setting highs for August 2 included 117°F in Imperial, CA, and 115°F in Phoenix, AZ. Phoenix achieved another daily record high, 116°F, on August 3. Elsewhere on the 3rd, daily record highs stretched from Ukiah, CA (107°F), to Garden City, KS (104°F). Pueblo, CO (107°F on August 3), shattered a monthly record, previously set with a reading of 105°F on August 2, 2008. On August 4, record-setting heat extended into the San Joaquin Valley, where Bakersfield, CA, attained 109°F. In contrast, cool air settled across the northern Plains and Northwest. From August 4-6, Livingston, MT, tallied a trio of daily-record lows (34, 38, and 41°F). Communities setting consecutive daily-record lows on August 4-5 included Great Falls, MT (38 and 42°F); Rapid City, SD (43 and 45°F); Miles City, MT (42 and 45°F); and Worland, WY (44 and 47°F). Denver, CO (47°F), posted a daily-record low on August 5, just 2 days after collecting a daily-record high of 102°F. Cool air expanded into the Midwest, where Sioux City, IA, tied a daily-record (50°F) for August 8. Heat persisted, however, in the Far West, including the Great Basin. From August 5-8, Ely, NV, closed the week with four daily-record highs (96, 99, 97, and 95°F). At week’s end, heat quickly returned across the Northwest and High Plains. In the latter region, record-setting highs for August 8 surged to 108°F in McCook, NE, and 106°F in Dodge City, KS.

9-15: Blazing heat and mostly dry conditions again gripped the southern Plains, leading to cascading impacts on immature summer crops. Livestock were also further stressed by the 4-week hot spell. Elsewhere, monsoon-related shower activity broadly affected the West, although rainfall mostly bypassed the Pacific Coast States and several other areas. More than three dozen active fires in Washington and Oregon helped to boost the nation’s year-to-date wildfire acreage well above 7 million. The persistent ridge of high pressure resulted in weekly temperatures averaging at least 5 to 10°F above normal from the central and southern Plains into the mid-South. Readings also averaged more than 5°F above normal in the southwestern Corn Belt. However, the remainder of the Midwest experienced near- or slightly above-normal temperatures. Similar conditions extended into the Northeast, while below-normal readings (temperatures as much as 5°F below normal) covered parts of Montana and North Dakota. In the West, early-week heat, followed by cooler conditions, resulted in temperatures mostly averaging within a few degrees of normal. Extreme and persistent gripped the central and southern Plains. Several locations in Kansas reached 110°F or higher, with Russell, KS, reporting a monthly record reading of 112°F on August 9 (previously, 109°F on August 15, 1983, and several earlier dates). In Kansas, Garden City (108°F on August 9) just missed its monthly record, which remains 109°F on August 10, 1964. Early-week heat extended into the West, where Hanford, CA, collected a daily record-tying high of 110°F on August 9. Albuquerque, NM, set a station record with its fourth triple-digit reading of the month (100°F on August 9); the previous August record of 2 such days had been set in 1938, 1980, 1994, and 2023. Farther north, Alamosa, CO, opened the month with ten consecutive 90-degree readings. Prior to this year, Alamosa’s record for 90-degree readings in August had been 6 days in 2020. Although hot conditions eventually eased in the West, punishing heat persisted on the central and southern Plains. Russell, KS, followed its monthly record high with four daily-record highs (105, 107, 108, and 109°F) from August 10-13. Borger, TX, registered consecutive daily-record highs (105 and 107°F, respectively) on August 13 and 14. During the mid- to late-week period, extreme heat overspread the mid-South, where Fayetteville, AR, posted five consecutive daily-record highs (101, 102, 101, 101, and 104°F) from August 12-16. Consecutive daily-record readings of 103°F were noted on August 13-14 in Joplin, MO. At week’s end, Southeastern heat intensified. In the southern Atlantic States, record-setting highs for August 15 included 99°F in Lumberton, NC, and 98°F in Brooksville, FL. Conversely, Midwestern temperatures remained below 90°F all week along and northeast of a line from central South Dakota to southern Ohio.

Late-summer warmth overtook Alaska, pushing weekly temperatures as much as 10°F above normal. Maximum temperatures topped 70°F nearly statewide, with readings above 80°F noted in parts of eastern and southeastern Alaska. On August 13-14, Juneau notched consecutive daily-record highs (80 and 85°F, respectively). Utqiagvik, on the Arctic Coast, logged a daily-record high of 70°F on August 13.

16-22:  Hot weather stretched from the southern Plains to the southern Atlantic Coast. In the Southeast, showers locally offset heat-related impacts. Weekly temperatures averaged at least 5°F above normal from the southern half of the Plains into parts of the Southeast. Readings averaged as much as 10°F above normal across the southeastern Plains and the mid-South. Aside from locally significant rainfall in Nebraska and portions of neighboring states, showers on the Plains were widely scattered. In fact, negligible rain fell in the south-central U.S., including much of Texas. Elsewhere, hit-or-miss showers in the West were heaviest across the eastern half of the region, including portions of the Four Corners States. The Pacific Coast States and the western Great Basin remained mostly dry, with ongoing or expanding wildfire activity. Weekly temperatures broadly averaged at least 5°F above normal across interior sections of the West. Conversely, near- or slightly below-normal temperatures prevailed from the Dakotas, eastern Nebraska, and northeastern Kansas to the northern half of the Atlantic Coast, including key Midwestern corn production areas. and soybean Late-summer heat gripped the south-central U.S., pushing high temperatures on multiple days into the general range from 100 to 110°F. The hot weather depleted topsoil moisture and kept livestock, rangeland, pastures, and immature summer crops under stress. Readings near 100°F extended eastward to the Mississippi Delta and scattered Southeastern locations. Jackson, MS, recorded triple-digit maximum temperatures each day during the week, peaking at 103°F on August 18. On August 16 and 17, Greenville, MS, collected consecutive daily-record highs (103 and 104°F, respectively). Tallahassee, FL, touched 100°F on August 17 and 18, setting or tying a daily record both days. Parts of Arkansas bore the brunt of the heat, with Fort Smith experiencing triple-digit heat each day starting August 4. Fort Smith’s temperature peaked on August 18 and 19 with a pair of daily-record highs of 109°F—the hottest weather in that location since August 6, 2011, when it was 111°F. Farther east, Miami, FL (100°F on August 18) tied its all-time station record and achieved a triple-digit reading for only the second time, along with July 21, 1942. Extreme heat also extended into the Desert Southwest, where daily-record highs included 115°F (on the 18th) in Imperial, CA, and 116°F (on the 22nd) in Yuma, AZ. Heat in Texas generally intensified as the week ended, with triple-digit, daily-record highs for August 22 reaching 109°F in Wichita Falls, 108°F in Longview, 107°F in Austin, and 103°F in Corpus Christi. A day earlier in the West, record-setting highs for the 21st had included 101°F in Boise, ID, and 100°F in Pullman, WA, and Denver, CO. Four days of 100-degree heat so far this month in Denver edged an August 1878 record by a day. In contrast, temperatures remained below 90°F all week in much of the Midwest and Northeast.

23-29: Monsoon-related showers mostly bypassed California, the Great Basin, and the Northwest, where several dozen wildfires remained active. Those blazes were in various stages of containment, with firefighting efforts locally hampered by heat, low humidity levels, and gusty winds. Meanwhile, blazing hot weather persisted in the south-central U.S., with heat expanding northward as the week progressed. Weekly temperatures averaged at least 5°F above normal from southern California to the southern Plains, extending northward across large sections of the Rockies, Intermountain West, and High Plains. Spotty showers across the nation’s mid-section provided only limited and localized relief from the heat, which stressed rangeland, pastures, livestock, and immature, rain-fed summer crops. Elsewhere, the central and eastern Corn Belt experienced dry weather and near- or below-normal temperatures, while spotty showers stretched from the Mississippi Delta to the southern Atlantic Coast. Temperatures averaged as much as 5°F below normal from the eastern Corn Belt into the lower Great Lakes region. With heat dominating the western and central U.S., temperatures above 100°F were commonly observed from southern California to the southern half of the Plains. Readings of 110°F or higher affected low-elevation sites in the Desert Southwest and scattered locations on the southern Plains. Conversely, temperatures remained below 90°F all week in much of the Midwest. Abilene, TX, reported 30 consecutive readings of 100°F or higher from August 2-31, tying a station record originally set from August 3 – September 1, 1952. Abilene’s highest reading during the hot spell was 109°F on August 23. Elsewhere in Texas, the week began on the 23rd with daily-record highs in locations such as Dallas-Fort Worth (109°F), Borger (107°F), Waco (107°F), and Longview (106°F). The following day, August 24, daily record highs soared to 111°F in Lawton, OK, and Wichita Falls, TX, while Dallas-Fort Worth posted a second consecutive daily record of 109°F. Soon, the heat core shifted into the Desert Southwest, where Las Vegas, NV, achieved daily-record highs of 110°F on August 23 and 26, along with 111°F on August 27. Phoenix, AZ, posted consecutive daily record highs (115 and 117°F, respectively) on August 25 and 26. In southern California, daily-record highs on August 26 soared to 118°F in Thermal and Palm Springs. At week’s end, heat re-intensified across the south-central U.S., where daily-record highs for August 29 in Texas rose to 103°F in Longview and 102°F in Borger. In contrast, daily-record lows dotted the East, including a reading of 51°F on August 25 in Lynchburg, VA.

Jim G. Munley, jr.
http://www.jimmunleywx.com