ROANOKE, Va. – Happy Monday and welcome to another edition of Beyond The Forecast!
We’ve reached the hottest time of the year in Southwest and Central Virginia! On average, July hits the highest high and low temperatures over the course of the entire year.
Recommended Videos
Here’s a look at the averages and records for the month in Roanoke.
The average high temperature actually doesn’t move the entire month, it stays at 88 degrees. The average low temperature goes up from 66 to 68 degrees over the course of the month. The hottest July temperature on record happened on July 10, 1936, when the mercury hit 105 degrees.
Not only is it already the hottest month of the year, it’s trending hotter as our climate changes.
Our friends at Climate Central have crunched the numbers and found that the average July temperature in the Star City has increased by 3.1 degrees since 1970.
The change is not quite as drastic in Lynchburg, but the Hill City has still seen a warm-up over the past 50 Julys. The average temperature is up 1.6 degrees since 1970.
Both of those Climate Central graphics also show the temperature and precipitation extremes for July 4th in each city, in case you’re curious.
The hotter trend in July is also reflected by the top five months by average temperature in Roanoke. You can see that four of the top five have happened in the last 30 years, indicative of a warming climate.
We here at Your Local Weather Authority know that climate change is a political issue. We won’t tell you what to believe, but will present the facts as we get them.
Switching gears to your forecast, the heat and humidity is back with us after the holiday weekend! Meteorologist Chris Michaels has a look at how long our latest heat wave will last and whether we’ll see big impacts from Tropical Storm Elsa in our daily forecast article.
You can always get specific forecast details for your zone, whether it’s the Roanoke Valley, Southside, the Highlands or elsewhere around Southwest and Central Virginia, anytime at WSLS.com/weather. Know your zone!
In case you missed it, we’re posting great weather and science content on WSLS.com. Here are a few links from the past week to check out:
If you prefer your weather information delivered by social media, you can follow Your Local Weather Authority on Facebook and Twitter.
You can also keep up with me on social media. I’m on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok, follow along!
-- Justin McKee