Fresno just sweated through warmest July on record. How hot did it get — and what’s next?
After several weeks of scorching temperatures, July went down as the warmest on record in Fresno and several other California cities.
That’s according to preliminary data from the National Weather Service.
The data, released Friday, highlights the average monthly temperatures across cities in the Sacramento Valley and San Joaquin Valley.
“It probably comes as no surprise to anyone but it was a hot month,” the National Weather Service wrote Thursday in a social media post.
Here’s how hot it got in July, a temperature outlook for August and what’s in the forecast for Fresno:
Fresno has warmest July on record
Fresno recorded its warmest July ever last month, according to the National Weather Service’s Hanford office.
The San Joaquin Valley city reported a mean average temperature of 90 degrees in July, the weather service said via X.
That’s about a degree higher than its previous record of 88.7 degrees, set in July 2021.
National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Rasch said a “big dome of high pressure” resulted in record temperatures across California.
What about other California cities?
In July, Modesto, Stockton and Merced all recorded their warmest mean average temperatures for the month, the weather service’s Hanford office said on social media.
Modesto reported a mean average temperature of 85 degrees in July, compared to its normal monthly average of 79 degrees.
Stockton averaged 83-degree days in July, which means the city was 5 degrees higher than its normal of 78 degrees.
Merced’s mean average temperature for the month was 85.4 degrees, toppling a previous record set in July 1931 by about 1 degree.
Sacramento also experienced its warmest July on record.
Sacramento Executive Airport recorded an average temperature of 81 degrees in July, the weather service said, surpassing its normal average temperature for the month by more than 5 degrees.
According to National Weather Service meteorologist Ryan Kittell, one San Luis Obispo County city unofficially had the hottest July on record since the agency started collecting data in 1952.
The monthly average temperature in Paso Robles was 100.2 degrees in July, compared to 99.5 degrees on average for the month in 1996 and 2023.
How did July temperatures affect California wildfires?
July’s searing weather coincided with the outbreak of massive wildfires across the state.
As of Friday afternoon, the Park Fire had burned more than 399,000 acres in Butte, Plumas, Shasta and Tehama counties, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
The 2024 SQF Lightning Complex fire had scorched more than 89,000 acres in Kern and Tulare counties, and the Lake Fire in northern Santa Barbara County had blackened about 38,000 acres, Cal Fire said.
All three blazes started in July.
What will weather in August be like?
Folks shouldn’t expect temperatures this month to heat up nearly as much as July, Rasch said.
The National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center said there’s an equal chance of temperatures being normal or slightly above normal in August in California.
Equal chances are isolated along the state’s coast.
What’s the forecast for Fresno?
According to the National Weather Service’s seven-day forecast for Fresno, there was a 20% chance of rain before 11 p.m. Friday.
Friday night will be mostly cloudy, with a low temperature around 78 degrees and winds around 5 mph.
Saturday and Sunday were forecast to be sunny and hot, with high temperatures near 104 and 105 degrees, respectively, and low temperatures around 76 degrees.
More hot, sunny weather is expected Monday when the high will be near 104 with an overnight low around 76.
On Tuesday, the high will be near 106 and the low will hover around 76. Winds could gust as high as 15 mph.
More winds could gust on Wednesday, which will have a high near 106 and a low around 75.
The mercury starts to drop a little on Thursday. The high will be near 103 while the low will be around 73.
The high on Friday will hover near 100.
This story was originally published August 2, 2024 at 3:29 PM.