Summer 2010 set temperature records across the country and around the world. The Natural Resources Defense Council's analysis of June, July, and August 2010 US temperature data from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA's) Historic Climatology Network reveal that this summer set heat records in many parts of the country. In fact, of the 1,218 weather stations in the contiguous United States, with data going back to 1895, 153 locations recorded their hottest summer on record and nearly one in three stations recorded average temperatures among their five hottest on record.
Even more telling is that nighttime lows were the hottest ever recorded at nearly one in four weather stations. Hot, stagnant nights can prove even more harmful than daytime highs as vulnerable populations (particularly the elderly) are unable to cool down and get relief from the stress of the daytime heat.
