Extreme Summer Temperatures Becoming More Frequent

Previously rare extreme summer temperatures are occurring more frequently in some regions of the U.S.—especially in the Southwest, the upper tier of the Midwest, and the Atlantic coast—due to climate change, according to a new study in Climatic Change. The authors also find that the prevalence of extreme summer temperatures that historically have occurred only 5% of the time will continue to increase in the future, occurring at least 70% of the time everywhere in the contiguous U.S. by 2064. What’s more, the South and Southwest are projected to experience the largest increase in frequency of hot summers.