NOAA: July was hottest month on record for the contiguous U.S., averaging 76.9°F

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said July was the hottest month on record for the contiguous United States, extending NOAA’s national temperature tracking to a new high for the mainland 48 states and Washington, D.C. The new NOAA assessment comes as summer heat intensifies concerns about public safety and the operational demands placed on emergency services, utilities, and transportation systems.

NOAA reported that the average temperature for the contiguous U.S. during July was 76.9 degrees Fahrenheit. The agency said that was about 0.1 to 0.2 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than the previous benchmark July records tied to 1936 and 2012, which NOAA also identified as prior high points in its long-running temperature dataset.

In addition to the monthly ranking, NOAA’s release placed the result in the broader context of how U.S. temperatures are measured for national comparisons, including how NOAA aggregates observations across the geography covered by its contiguous-record analysis. By design, these are national summaries meant to show whether a given month breaks records relative to earlier periods in NOAA’s dataset.

The updated record also has practical implications for state and local heat preparedness, since record-setting heat can increase the likelihood of heat-related illness and strain cooling demand. When months are among the hottest on record, officials often face higher call volumes for emergency medical services and greater demand on power grids, especially during peak electricity hours.

NOAA’s temperature findings can also affect how agencies and researchers interpret climate and weather patterns over time, including for assessing the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events. While monthly averages do not describe conditions in every community, they serve as a benchmark for evaluating whether the overall baseline conditions shift.

The Hill reported NOAA’s July figures on Monday, citing NOAA’s temperature calculations for the contiguous U.S. and Washington, D.C., and describing the comparison to the prior record Julys from 1936 and 2012. The NOAA record update sets the stage for further analysis of seasonal impacts and for continued monitoring of national heat trends in the months ahead.