NOAA: Summer Weather Not Bad

According to NOAA’s July 2013 State of the Climate report, the average temperature this past month for the contiguous U.S. was 74.3 degrees Fahrenheit. While this monthly average is 0.8 degrees above the 20th century average, and ranks as the 30th warmest July on record, nobody is complaining about temperatures after last year’s heat wave, USAgNet reports.

This July was also unique in that the U.S. saw unusually high amounts of precipitation. The national average was 3.47 inches, about 0.7 inches above average, making it the 5th wettest July on record for the contiguous U.S. Despite this rain, drought affected 46% of the U.S., especially the Plains region. Most of this drought is considered moderate, however.

The NOAA report mentions that the real concern is the weather this fall. Because of late planting and slow crop maturation, farmers likely won’t be able to harvest until later this fall. While crops this year escaped the usual summer heat stress, they may not fare so well if frost starts entering the forecast before harvest.