Counties in Massachusetts with the fastest-rising temperatures in the last 100 years
Counties in Massachusetts with the fastest-rising temperatures in the last 100 years
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.
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 Massachusetts 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.
#14. Hampshire County
- #8 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 38.5 F (3.4 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 60.2 F (2.6 F above century average)
#13. Berkshire County
- #8 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 36.7 F (3.3 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 57.6 F (2.9 F above century average)
#12. Hampden County
- #7 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 39.1 F (3.2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 60.8 F (3 F above century average)
#11. Franklin County
- #7 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 37.7 F (3.6 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 59.6 F (3.1 F above century average)
#10. Essex County
- #5 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 41.2 F (3.2 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 60.9 F (3.8 F above century average)
#9. Worcester County
- #6 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 39 F (3.4 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 60.6 F (3.8 F above century average)
#8. Bristol County
- #4 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 43 F (3.7 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 62.5 F (3.7 F above century average)
#7. Dukes County
- #4 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 44.9 F (3.5 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 61.4 F (4 F above century average)
#6. Middlesex County
- #5 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 40.4 F (3.5 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 62.5 F (4.3 F above century average)
#5. Nantucket County
- #5 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.7 F (3.9 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 59.4 F (4 F above century average)
#4. Barnstable County
- #4 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 45.1 F (4 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 60.9 F (4.1 F above century average)
#3. Norfolk County
- #4 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 41.6 F (3.6 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 63.2 F (4.7 F above century average)
#2. Plymouth County
- #4 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 43.2 F (3.8 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 63 F (4.5 F above century average)
#1. Suffolk County
- #4 warmest year since 1895
- Recent average low: 42.8 F (3.4 F above century average)
- Recent average high: 62.8 F (5.1 F above century average)
