August 2026 was the warmest August on record across the contiguous U.S., with the average temperature reaching 75.6°F (+3.5°F vs. the 20th-century average), while precipitation totaled 2.30 inches (-0.32 inches vs. average), capping the warmest meteorological summer in the 132-year record.

• The contiguous U.S. averaged 75.6°F in August, +3.5°F above the 20th-century average, making it the warmest August on record since 1895. Daytime maximum temperatures averaged 88.6°F, also the highest August reading on record.

• Meteorological summer averaged 74.4°F, +3.0°F above average, making June–August 2026 the warmest summer in the 132-year record and exceeding the previous records set in 1936 and 2021 by 0.4°F.

• Record August warmth was widespread across the West and Southwest, with California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Colorado each recording their warmest August average temperature. California and New Mexico also set records for average daytime maximum temperatures.

• Overnight heat was also notable, with record-warm average minimum temperatures in California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, and Colorado, while Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado recorded their warmest or tied-warmest summers overall.

• CONUS precipitation totaled 2.30 inches in August, -0.32 inches below the 20th-century average, ranking in the driest third of the historical record and marking the driest August since 2000.

• Regional rainfall was sharply uneven: Indiana and Ohio recorded their wettest Augusts on record at roughly twice normal precipitation, while Texas and Oklahoma received less than 30% of average and posted their third- and fifth-driest Augusts, respectively.

• Drought covered 59.1% of the CONUS as of September 1, up about +10.5 ppts from early August, with expansion or intensification across the northern and southern Plains, Upper Midwest, Lower Mississippi Valley, and Deep South.

• Hawaiʻi received 16.01 inches of precipitation in August, +10.84 inches above the 1991–2020 average and the second-wettest August on record, while January–August precipitation reached 75.83 inches, +36.28 inches above average, making it the wettest start to a year on record for the state.

• Assessing the U.S. Temperature and Precipitation Analysis in August 2026