NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY

JUNE 2026

May 31-June 6: Little or no rain fell across the remainder of the country, including much of the eastern and western U.S. In fact, dry weather dominated the West, excluding parts of Montana and New Mexico, along with areas along and near the northern Pacific Coast. The East only received occasional showers, except for almost completely dry weather from the middle Atlantic States into southern New England. The Eastern dryness began to reverse some of the drought-easing impacts of late-May rainfall, while Western dryness boosted irrigation demands amid local and regional concerns regarding summer water supplies. Further, weekly temperatures averaged more than 5°F above normal across parts of California, the Great Basin, and Intermountain West, as well as an area encompassing portions of the northern and central Plains and upper Midwest. Conversely, cooler-than normal conditions (temperatures averaging at least 5°F below normal) dominated the southern Atlantic States, excluding southern Florida. Near- or slightly below-normal temperatures were also common in the Rio Grande Valley and from the Pacific Northwest to the northern High Plains. May ended and June began with cool, wet weather blanketing Montana, where record-setting rainfall totals for May 31 included 1.20 inches in Great Falls and 1.05 inches in Kalispell and Miles City. On June 1, high temperatures in Montana peaked at 47°F in Choteau and 52°F in Havre. A separate area of cool air affected the Northeast early in the week, when daily record lows in Maine dipped to 33°F (on May 31) in Bangor and 30°F (on June 1) in Houlton. On June 2, Northeastern daily record lows included 37°F in Glens Falls, NY, and 40°F in Hartford, CT. As the week progressed, the Eastern chill settled farther to the south. By June 3, daily-record lows in North Carolina fell to 48°F in Elizabeth City and Raleigh-Durham. On June 3-4, Florence, SC, logged a pair of daily-record lows (49 and 52°F, respectively). In Florida, Gainesville (55 and 58°F) and Brooksville (61 and 60°F) registered consecutive daily record lows on June 4-5. Interestingly, warmth quickly returned across the Northeast while cool conditions lingered in the Southeast. On June 4, Plattsburgh, NY, posted a daily-record high of 88°F. The following day, record-setting highs for June 5 included 94°F in Atlantic City, NJ, and 92°F in Georgetown, DE. Farther west, a separate heat surge led to daily-record highs for June 6 in locations such as Sidney, NE (98°F), and Sheridan, WY (97°F). In early June, near- or below-normal temperatures dominated northern Alaska, while warmer-than-normal weather prevailed across the southern half of the state. In fact, daily-record highs included 80°F (on June 2) in Sitka and 79°F (on June 3) in Yakutat. On June 4-5, Kodiak collected a pair of daily-record highs (78 and 77°F, respectively). Juneau’s high of 80°F on June 2 marked the highest reading in that location since July 28, 2025, when it was 81°F. Warmth briefly spread as far north as Nome, where the high of 72°F on June 3 was a record for the date. On the Arctic Coast, Utqiagvik’s high of 35°F on June 2 represented the first instance of an above-freezing reading this year. Farther south, Hawaii experienced unsettled weather, although heavy rain was mostly limited to windward locations.

7-13: Rainfall was scarce across the southern Atlantic States, excluding parts of Florida’s peninsula, and most areas west of the Rockies, except along and near the Canadian border.

Western dryness was accompanied by pre-monsoon heat in much of the Southwest, but by unusually chilly conditions for much of the week in the Northwest. In fact, weekly temperatures averaged as much as 5°F below normal in the northern Rockies and environs, extending as far west as eastern sections of Oregon and Washington. Conversely, warmer-than-normal weather (temperatures averaging 5 to 10°F above normal) stretched from the upper Midwest into the Northeast, southward into the central Appalachians and middle Atlantic States. Temperatures also averaged at least 5°F above normal in many locations from the Desert Southwest to the southern Plains and mid-South. As the week began, heat spiked across the High Plains, where daily record highs for June 7 in Nebraska reached 99°F in Chadron and 98°F in Sidney. Two days later, a lightning-sparked wildfire—the South Fork Fire—quickly scorched more than 39,000 acres of vegetation in northwestern Nebraska, southwest of Chadron. Meanwhile, hot weather also prevailed early in the week across Florida’s peninsula, where record-setting highs for June 8 soared to 98°F in Fort Myers and 96°F in Sarasota-Bradenton. In contrast, cool air began to spread across the northern Rockies and the Northwest. In western Montana, daily record lows for June 8 dipped to 28°F in Butte and 31°F in Missoula. At mid-week, another heat surge arrived on the Plains. However, record-breaking heat was restricted to the southern High Plains, including the northern panhandle of Texas, where highs on June 10 rose to 105°F in Borger and 103°F in Amarillo. Farther east, a brief heat wave peaked on June 11-12, with consecutive daily-record highs in locations such as Raleigh, Durham, NC (101 and 103°F); Richmond, VA (98 and 100°F); Salisbury, MD (98°F both days); Philadelphia, PA (97 and 98°F); and New York’s LaGuardia Airport (96 and 98°F). Elsewhere, building warmth along the Pacific Coast contrasted with another surge of cool air farther inland, particularly across the Northwest. In California, daily-record highs for June 11 reached 101°F in Santa Rosa and San Rafael. However, an interior Northwestern chill peaked on June 11 with daily-record lows of 20°F in Stanley, ID; 26°F in Burns, OR; 32°F in Pocatello, ID; and 35°F in Ellensburg, WA. Two days later, on the 13th, Oregon’s record-setting highs included 92°F in Roseburg and 91°F in Eugene.

Near- or below-normal temperatures covered much of Alaska, with patchy warmer-than-normal conditions limited to southern and southeastern sections of the state. Daily record-tying lows included 27°F (on June 9) in Kotzebue and 34°F (on June 10) in McGrath. A light freeze had occurred in McGrath on June 9, when the low of 32°F was not a record for the date. Kotzebue’s temperature remained continuously at or below 40°F from June 4-9, averaging more than 9°F below normal during those 6 days.

14-20: Tropical Storm Arthur briefly formed near the middle Texas coast on June 17, hours before wobbling inland near Galveston. The system delivered heavy rain in parts of southern Texas. 

A series of cold fronts caused occasional showers and thunderstorms, resulting in localized wind and hail damage. The Plains also received scattered showers, amid variable impacts related to lingering drought on rangeland, pastures. In the western U.S., hot, dry weather prevailed, aside from scattered Southwestern showers. Complications related to Western heat included heavy irrigation demands and a broadly elevated wildfire threat.

One of the region’s most significant wildfires, the Iron Fire near Eureka, UT, ignited on June 19 and quickly burned more than 20,000 acres of grass and chaparral. Weekly temperatures averaged as much as 5 to 10°F above normal in the West, but were 5 to 10°F below normal from Nebraska and the Dakotas eastward into the lower Great Lakes region. Near-normal temperatures covered the remainder of the central and eastern U.S., aside from warm, humid weather along the Atlantic Seaboard. Northwestern heat peaked early in the week with consecutive daily-record highs on June 14-15 in Olympia, WA (92 and 93°F), and Eugene, OR (96 and 98°F). Seattle, WA (89 and 91°F), and Portland, OR (94 and 97°F), also notched a pair of record highs on those dates. A separate area of heat affecting portions of the southern Atlantic States led to daily-record highs in locations such as Raleigh-Durham, NC (101°F on June 14), and Miami, FL (95°F on June 16). In contrast, cool air settled across the northern Plains before spreading southeastward. On June 15, daily-record lows dipped to 30°F in Casper, WY; 33°F in Alliance, NE; and 43°F in Mobridge, SD. A day later, Dubois, PA, collected a record-setting low (41°F) for June 16. During the mid- to late-week period, heat affected portions of the south-central U.S., including the southern half of the High Plains. Pueblo, CO, attained 106°F, a record for June 17. On the same date, highs of 109°F in Roswell, NM, and Midland, TX, were just shy of respective daily records. San Angelo, TX, achieved a daily-record high of 110°F on June 18. Near- or above-normal temperatures prevailed in Alaska, except for chilly conditions in the Aleutians and environs. With a high of 81°F on June 19, Fairbanks noted its first day this year with a reading above the 80-degree mark.

21-27: For much of the week, hot, dry weather dominated the West. Weekly temperatures averaged more than 5°F above normal in parts of southern New Mexico and western Texas.

Weekly temperatures averaging at least 5°F below normal across portions of the northern and central Plains and the Midwest benefited summer crops entering the reproductive stage of development. Near- or above-normal temperatures prevailed across the Deep South, from Texas to Florida. Hot weather across the Deep South contributed to several record-setting high temperatures, especially across Florida’s peninsula. On June 21, West Palm Beach, FL, opened the week with a daily record-tying high of 96°F. Winter Haven, FL, posted a daily-record high of 99°F on June 22. Key West, FL, reported a minimum temperature of 84°F each day from June 17-23 and 25-26. Elsewhere in Florida, Orlando tied a record for June 27 with a high of 97°F. Farther west, Nevada locations such as Elko (98°F) and Eureka (97°F) achieved daily-record highs on June 23. Heat extended into the Northwest, where the National Weather Service office in Seattle, WA, logged consecutive daily-record highs (90 and 91°F, respectively) on June 23 and 24. In contrast, periods of cool, stormy weather affected the Midwest. In Missouri, maximum temperatures on June 22 remained below the 70-degree mark in Vichy-Rolla (67°F) and West Plains (69°F). Similarly, high temperatures on June 26 peaked at 68°F in Illinois locations such as Lincoln and Peoria. Near- or above-normal temperatures prevailed in Alaska, except for some cool weather across the state’s southern tier. On June 25, Kodiak collected a daily-record low of 36°F. Meanwhile, ongoing dry conditions in northwestern Alaska contrasted with frequent showers farther east. 

 

Jim G. Munley, jr.
http://www.jimmunleywx.com