Despite cool June, N.C. on pace for fifth-warmest year
On the heels of an unseasonably cool May, based on the average statewide temperature of 71.1F, June finished up as North Carolina’s 13th coolest in 129 years.
But as the year reached its midpoint, the story of 2023 thus far is prevailing warmth, according to an analysis from the N.C. State Climate Office.
In June, upper-level troughing over the eastern U.S. kept the region cooler amid prevailing northerly or northwesterly winds, but this pattern was also responsible for funneling in smoke from the Canadian wildfires. This was the fourth-coolest June on record for Highlands, Marshall and Monroe.
However, while average temperatures have generally been 3-4 degrees below normal during May and June, earlier in the year the departures were much greater and above normal — February’s average, for example, was 6.7 degrees above normal. According to the National Centers for Environmental Information, N.C. is still on pace for its fifth warmest year on record.
