Hitting 116 degrees F in normally temperate Portland, Oregon. 105 degrees in Reno in September, just as summer is meant to be waning. And in California's Death Valley National Park, temperatures hit almost 130 degrees in the aptly named Furnace Creek, marking a world record for the hottest September day in history.
2021 and 2022 saw some of the hottest temperatures ever recorded, as across the country extreme heat waves wreaked havoc on communities accustomed to more moderate weather. For many regions, the consequences were grave: in the 2021 Western heatwave, hundreds lost their lives, largely due to a lack of air conditioning, and wildfires ravaged the area.
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Map of the past year's temperatures compared to the 100-year average
While not every county in the nation has experienced such extreme heat, climate change has dramatically changed the heat landscape in nearly every state. Coastal regions and the Southern U.S. are particularly vulnerable to rising temperatures, and are also frequently targets of extreme weather events like hurricanes and tornadoes.
Just as all states are not impacted equally by rising temperatures, regions within states have also seen widely different temperature changes over the last decades. Factors such as proximity to urban areas, bodies of water, and mountains can dramatically change the climate of a region. Stacker cited data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Center for Environmental Information to identify the counties in Kentucky with the greatest departure from average temperatures during the period December 2021 to November 2022 compared to the 1901-2000 average. Average temperature over the past year served as a tiebreaker. Additional data on recent average high and low temperatures for each county is also included.
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#50. Carlisle County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 59.2 degrees Fahrenheit (1.8 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #12 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 48.2 F (1.4 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70.3 F (2.1 F above century average)
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#49. Campbell County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 55.6 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #14 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 44.7 F (1.7 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 66.4 F (2.2 F above century average)
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#48. Pendleton County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 55.7 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #15 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 44.5 F (1.6 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 66.8 F (2.2 F above century average)
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#47. Harrison County
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#46. Bourbon County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 55.9 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #16 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 44.2 F (1.6 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.5 F (2.3 F above century average)
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#45. Clark County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.3 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #16 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 44.8 F (1.6 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.8 F (2.1 F above century average)
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#44. Madison County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.9 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #17 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.9 F (1.8 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68 F (2 F above century average)
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#43. Taylor County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.3 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #13 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46 F (2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.6 F (1.9 F above century average)
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#42. Adair County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.5 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #15 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46.1 F (2.2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.9 F (1.6 F above century average)
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#41. Grayson County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.6 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #11 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.4 F (1.5 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 69.8 F (2.4 F above century average)
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#40. Ohio County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 58.1 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46.2 F (1.2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70 F (2.6 F above century average)
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#39. McLean County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 58.6 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 47 F (1.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70.2 F (2.8 F above century average)
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#38. Ballard County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 59 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #11 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 48 F (1.4 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70 F (2.2 F above century average)
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#37. Simpson County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 59.1 degrees Fahrenheit (1.9 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 47.9 F (2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70.4 F (1.7 F above century average)
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#36. Boyd County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.2 degrees Fahrenheit (2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #12 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 44.5 F (2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.8 F (2 F above century average)
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#35. Garrard County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57 degrees Fahrenheit (2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #11 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46.2 F (2.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.8 F (2 F above century average)
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#34. Hardin County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.2 degrees Fahrenheit (2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #11 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.5 F (1.7 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.9 F (2.3 F above century average)
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#33. Marion County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.2 degrees Fahrenheit (2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #11 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46 F (2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.4 F (2 F above century average)
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#31. Green County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 58 degrees Fahrenheit (2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #12 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46.2 F (1.8 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 69.8 F (2.1 F above century average)
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#30. Hart County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 58.1 degrees Fahrenheit (2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #9 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46 F (1.6 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70.2 F (2.4 F above century average)
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#29. Hopkins County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 59 degrees Fahrenheit (2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 47.5 F (1.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70.6 F (2.8 F above century average)
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#28. McCracken County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 59.2 degrees Fahrenheit (2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #9 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 48 F (1.5 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70.4 F (2.5 F above century average)
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#27. Kenton County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 55.5 degrees Fahrenheit (2.1 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #13 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.1 F (2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 66 F (2.2 F above century average)
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#26. Boyle County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.8 degrees Fahrenheit (2.1 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #8 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46 F (2.2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.7 F (2.1 F above century average)
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#25. Nelson County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.4 degrees Fahrenheit (2.1 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #9 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46.1 F (1.9 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.7 F (2.3 F above century average)
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#24. Muhlenberg County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 59.1 degrees Fahrenheit (2.1 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #9 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 47.4 F (1.4 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70.8 F (2.9 F above century average)
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#23. Grant County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 55.9 degrees Fahrenheit (2.2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #14 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.1 F (2.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 66.7 F (2.3 F above century average)
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#22. Trimble County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.2 degrees Fahrenheit (2.2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #12 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.3 F (2.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.1 F (2.3 F above century average)
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#21. Oldham County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.5 degrees Fahrenheit (2.2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #13 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.2 F (1.8 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.9 F (2.6 F above century average)
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#20. Spencer County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.1 degrees Fahrenheit (2.2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #9 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.7 F (1.8 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.6 F (2.6 F above century average)
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#19. Washington County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.1 degrees Fahrenheit (2.2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #8 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.9 F (2.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.3 F (2.3 F above century average)
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#18. Edmonson County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 58.7 degrees Fahrenheit (2.2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #8 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46.5 F (1.8 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70.8 F (2.6 F above century average)
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#17. Warren County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 59.4 degrees Fahrenheit (2.2 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #8 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 47.6 F (2.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 71.1 F (2.3 F above century average)
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#16. Boone County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 55.7 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #12 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.4 F (2.3 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 65.9 F (2.3 F above century average)
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#15. Scott County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.3 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #11 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45 F (2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.6 F (2.7 F above century average)
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#14. Henry County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.4 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.3 F (2.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.6 F (2.6 F above century average)
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#13. Owen County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.4 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.5 F (2.2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.3 F (2.5 F above century average)
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#12. Carroll County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.5 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #11 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.8 F (2.4 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.2 F (2.2 F above century average)
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#11. Shelby County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.6 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45 F (1.8 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68 F (2.8 F above century average)
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#10. Jefferson County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.6 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46.4 F (2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.9 F (2.7 F above century average)
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#9. Bullitt County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.8 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #8 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46.5 F (2.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 69 F (2.6 F above century average)
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#8. Butler County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 59.1 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #8 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 47.3 F (1.9 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 70.9 F (2.8 F above century average)
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#7. Gallatin County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.4 degrees Fahrenheit (2.4 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.9 F (2.5 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 66.9 F (2.2 F above century average)
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#6. Fayette County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.5 degrees Fahrenheit (2.4 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.1 F (2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 67.8 F (2.7 F above century average)
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#5. Franklin County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 56.9 degrees Fahrenheit (2.4 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #10 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.7 F (2.2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.2 F (2.7 F above century average)
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#4. Anderson County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57 degrees Fahrenheit (2.4 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #9 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.7 F (2.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.3 F (2.7 F above century average)
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#3. Jessamine County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57 degrees Fahrenheit (2.4 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #8 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.9 F (2.1 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68 F (2.7 F above century average)
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#2. Mercer County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57.1 degrees Fahrenheit (2.4 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #7 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 46 F (2.2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.1 F (2.5 F above century average)
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#1. Woodford County
- Average temperature, Dec. 2021-Nov. 2022: 57 degrees Fahrenheit (2.6 F above 1901-2000 average)
- #9 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.8 F (2.2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 68.2 F (2.9 F above century average)
