Summer’s Midway Point

Now that we’ve reached the unofficial midway point of summer, it’s a good time to see how it ranks historically in the Nation’s Capital.  Although the last few days have been warmer than average, it’s actually been a relatively mild summer so far – especially compared to some recent summers locally.

The Nation’s Capital didn’t experience their first 90-degree day of 2016 until June 11 when it was 96 degrees.  By comparison, the first 90-degree day of 2015 was on May 12.  So far this year, there have been 13 days of 90-degree heat with today poised to be day number 14.  That’s a rather modest total considering Washington, D.C. averages 36 such day in a given year.

May 2016 was more than two degrees cooler than average in Washington, D.C.  Last month was a degree warmer than average – despite only 5 days with temperatures in the 90s.  Many would say that the most memorable weather event so far this summer has been the vacillation between cool and comfortable days and hot and humid days.  For example, high temperatures on July 3 and 4 remained in the 70s, giving Washingtonians one of the coolest Independence Day holidays on record.  However, Washingtonians experienced the hottest day of the year just yesterday when the high temperature reached 98 degrees at National Airport.  By comparison, Phoenix, Arizona has already had 19 days so far this summer with temperatures of at least 110 degrees according to the National Weather Service.  That’s significant because they average only 19 such days for the entire summer.

The coolest summer in recent memory for the Nation’s Capital was in 2000.  That year there was only a total of 11 days of at least 90 degrees in what was Washington, D.C.’s coolest summer since 1972.  By comparison, the torrid summer of 2010 saw a record total of 67 days of 90-degree heat in the Nation’s Capital with 33 such days through July 15, 2010.

This summer hasn’t been an especially hot one by Washington standards and certainly not as hot as other parts of the country.  Triple digit heat only occurs in the rarest of circumstances in the Nation’s Capital. No triple digit heat has been measured in Washington, D.C. since 2012.