Spring temperatures in Phoenix rising faster than most U.S. cities
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Spring is getting warmer overall with unusually hot days in most U.S. cities, and especially Phoenix.
Why it matters: Warmer springs can cause early snowmelt, which can imperil summer water resources and heighten wildfire risks.
- They can also worsen allergies, among other effects.
The big picture: Nonprofit climate research and communications organization Climate Central examined 55 years of U.S. temperature data for 241 cities and found the meteorological spring (March through May) has warmed by a national average 2.4°F.
- In an analysis released last Wednesday, the group found that 97% of the cities saw a warming spring trend.
- Four of every five cities now have at least one more week of warmer-than-average spring days compared to the 1970s.
Zoom in: Phoenix was among the fastest-warming cities, with a 5.3°F average seasonal temperature increase since 1970, tying with Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Albany, Georgia, for the study's fifth-largest increase.
- Tucson saw a larger jump at 5.8°F, the fourth-highest.
By the numbers: The cities with the largest average seasonal temperature spikes were:
- Reno, Nevada (6.8°F)
- El Paso, Texas (6.4°F)
- Las Vegas (6.1°F)
While the Southwest is the region seeing the fastest-warming spring, fall is the fastest-warming season in much of the Southwest and West.
Yes, but: One U.S. region has seen some spring cooling, stretching from northern Montana into North and South Dakota and a sliver of Minnesota.
The intrigue: As spring temperatures have increased, the average number of days with above-average temperatures also went up in 98% of the locations analyzed.
- Tucson (35 days) and Phoenix (32) saw some of the biggest increases.
Between the lines: The spring warming in the U.S. is taking place in tandem with increasing temperatures around the world due to human emissions of greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas.