NOAA unveils new U.S. climate ‘normals’ that are warmer than ever

Bob Henson, Jason Samenow, The Washington Post

On Tuesday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released an updated set of climate averages for the contiguous United States based on the 30-year period from 1991 to 2020, including more than 9,000 daily reporting stations. It refers to these averages* as “climate normals,” and updates them once every decade.

Compared to previous 30-year periods, the climate has turned unambiguously warmer.