COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- Summer 2011 saw some very high temperatures, and it is no surprise that it was one for the record books.
The weather began to warm in June, and it was relentless heat. A high pressure system anchored in the south central U.S. brought continuous heat to the region. Texas saw its hottest and driest season on record, and those influences did reach southern Colorado.
Meteorologically, summer is defined as the months of June, July, and August. The average overall temperature in Colorado Springs is 67.2 degrees. Normal variances usually lie within a couple degrees. Prior to 2011, the hottest summer on record was in 1980, where the average temperature was a sweltering 71.2 degrees. This record that had been standing for more than 30 years was broken this year. The summer of 2011 had an average temperature of a whopping 73.2 degrees, shattering the previous record and becoming the hottest summer ever on record!
In Pueblo, the average summer temperature is 72.9 degrees. The hottest summer on record was recorded in 1970 when the average temperature was 77.8 degrees. The summer of 2011 officially comes in as the second hottest on record with an average of 77.1 degrees.
It wasn't just southern Colorado. Many areas in Texas and the south also recorded their hottest summers on record. The culprit was a combination of a waning La Nina and the persistent high pressure.
Moisture was not as bad across the state. While drought conditions eased across the entire state, we are still in a severe to extreme drought in the southern half of the state. July saw a decent amount of moisture, but August dried out once again.
Despite the record hottest summer in Colorado Springs, only six record highs were broken:
92 degrees on June 5 beat the old record of 91 set in 2006
93 degrees on June 6 beat the old record of 90 set in 1988
91 degrees on June 16 beat the old record of 91 set in 2010
93 degrees on Aug. 22 beat the old record of 92 set in 2010
95 degrees on Aug. 23 beat the old record of 91 set in 2009
94 degrees on Aug. 25 beat the old record of 92 set in 1993
Also of note, the highest temperature ever recorded in Colorado Springs is 100 degrees, set on various dates. The highest temperature in 2011 was 97 degrees on June 29.
(All temperature records are from the official locations at the airports.)
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