2015 U.S. Average Temperature and Precipitation
Temperature
This year is the 18th consecutive year that the average national temperature exceeds the 20th century average, at 54.4 degrees Fahrenheit. The only year warmer than this year’s national average temperature was back in 2012, with an average temperature of 55.3ºF.
The pattern that took on in 2015 was a cold start in the East and a warm trend in the West. If you can recall it was a cold start to the year on Delmarva, with the average monthly temperature in February being 9 degrees below average.
The second part of the year had record breaking warmth in the East and near-average temperatures for the West. One of the recording stations on the peninsula, in Salisbury, had the warmest December ever on record. This national pattern resulted in every state in the U.S. having above average annual temperature.
Precipitation
The year 2015 is ranked the third wettest year in a 121-year period of record. The average contiguous national precipitation was 34.47 inches, which is 4.53 inches above average. Areas in the central and southeastern parts of the U.S. had precipitation totals well above average, while some areas in the West and Northeast were drier than average. The recording station in Salisbury was approximately five and a half niches above average.
Summary
There were 20 weather and climate disaster events in the U.S. in 2015, each with loses exceeding $1 billion. These events included drought, two floods, five severe storms, a wildfire event and a winter storm, resulting in the deaths on 155 people and significant economic effects.
