Monthly Attribution Overview – August 2026

The report finds that August 2026 saw widespread above-average temperatures across the U.S., with an average anomaly of 1.6°F across 192 cities. The Southwest was the hottest region, and 39 cities recorded one of their top-five hottest Augusts on record. Long-term trends show August warming since 1970 in 187 of the 192 analyzed locations, with Reno, Nevada, seeing the largest increase.

• In August 2026, the United States experienced widespread above-average temperatures, with an average anomaly of 1.6°F across 192 analyzed cities. While 159 cities recorded warmer-than-average conditions, only 28 cities were cooler than average.
• Temperature elevations occurred across all nine U.S. Climate Regions, with the Southwest being the most extreme, recording average temperatures more than 4.0°F above normal.
• Thirty-nine cities experienced one of their top-five hottest Augusts on record, based on data generally dating back to 1893. Oklahoma City was the most unusually warm city, with a temperature 7.2°F above usual.
• Long-term warming trends for August since 1970 were observed in 187 of the 192 analyzed locations. Reno, Nevada, showed the most significant increase, with average August temperatures 11.4°F warmer than in 1970.
• Climate change significantly influenced temperatures in specific locations; in Albuquerque, New Mexico, San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Honolulu, every day in August had temperatures that were twice as likely because of climate change (CSI 2). On average, Southwest cities had the highest number of CSI 2 or above days, averaging 24.

APA

Climate Central (2026). Monthly Attribution Overview – August 2026. https://www.climatecentral.org/report/monthly-attribution-overview-august-2026

Chicago

Climate Central. Monthly Attribution Overview – August 2026. 2026. https://www.climatecentral.org/report/monthly-attribution-overview-august-2026.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Central |title=Monthly Attribution Overview – August 2026 |date=2 September 2026 |url=https://www.climatecentral.org/report/monthly-attribution-overview-august-2026 |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climatecentral2026monthly, author = {{Climate Central}}, title = {{Monthly Attribution Overview – August 2026}}, institution = {Climate Central}, year = {2026}, month = sep, url = {https://www.climatecentral.org/report/monthly-attribution-overview-august-2026}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }