If it feels to you like our Summer in Richmond so far hasn't been that hot, you are correct...sort of. Our Summer so far has been about average, if you are looking at just the high temperatures.
July 2009: Average High (to date) 86 degrees.
Average July Highs: 87-88 degrees.
June 2009: Average High 85 degrees.
Average June Highs: 81(early June)-86(late June) degrees.
Probably why so many of us feel as though this Summer has not been as oppressive is because high dewpoint temperatures have not often coincided with excessively hot air temperatures (i.e., high Relative Humidity in heat). In fact, only a handful of days have been truly "hot" this Summer. The hottest temperature Richmond International Airport has recorded is 95 degrees on June 20. In July, afternoon temperatures have only climbed to 94 degrees on the 12th so far. We've only had a dozen 90-degree days so far this year...
90-degree days Year-to-Date: 12 through July 13 (2 in July, 7 in June, 0 in May, 3 in April).
On average (records from 1897-2000), Richmond has 39 90-degree-days per year.
Of course, we still have the rest of July, August, and September in which we can historically get some pretty warm temperatures in the Commonwealth. But, we do have a lot of ground to cover if we're going to meet that average 90-degree-days mark! By the end of this week, though, we will likely surpass the years on record for fewest 90-degree-days. The fewest 90-degree-days years occurred in 1971, 1927, 1917, all with only 14 days each year reaching that mark.
So perhaps the reason this Summer has felt so pleasant is the fact we have not experienced extremes, whether too much rain or to little, too hot temperatures, or too cold. Goldilocks would approve...this Summer so far has been just right.
--Carrie
