Record heat returns to Southern California after fall-like conditions hit
SACRAMENTO — The heat returned to Southern California this past weekend with records broken for both average daily high temperatures and low humidity.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center in Pasadena, the average high temperature for the date was 88.4 degrees, breaking the record from the previous July 29, 2016, when it was 88.0 degrees.
The average high temperature for the date of Saturday, Aug. 22 is the highest daily average high temperature for the date since records began in 1895.
The high temperature for Aug. 22 broke the previous August record from 2015 when it was also 88 degrees.
The average high for the date broke the previous August record of 88 degrees.
The city of L.A. topped the 2017/18 average highs for each month of the year.
The average low humidity for the date was 64.2 percent, breaking the August 2018 record of 63 percent, set last year.
“The most heat we’ve seen in Southern California since records began during World War II has made for a more extreme summer and the heat has had an impact on our agriculture,” said California Department of Agricultural Commissioner Jim Schoenfelder. “During a heatwave, our farmers have had to spend extra time in their fields and at their irrigation points to get the water they need so they can stay healthy and productive in the fall and winter.”
The average low temperature for Aug. 22 was near normal, but that’s no longer the case. The average low temperature record for the date of Aug. 22 is 0.1 degree below normal.
“August was not a normal August,” Schoenfelder said. “We had significant rainfall and high temperatures – more than what would normally be expected for August – so it wasn’t surprising that some areas in the state experienced a heatwave.”
The National Weather Service in Long Beach says August was the third hottest August on record statewide.
And in