September is the hottest on record for Phoenix as the heat wave continues

September typically brings relief to heat-stricken Phoenix as fall takes hold and monsoon humidity subsides. But not this year. The month that ended Monday was the hottest September ever recorded in the city, following the warmest summer on record, and there is no end to the triple-digit highs in sight.

According to the National Weather Service in Phoenix, the average temperature in Phoenix in September was 94.6 degrees at Sky Harbor International Airport, surpassing the previous highest temperature of 92.2 degrees in 2001.

A high pressure system, sometimes called a heat dome, formed over the Southwest, causing sustained highs above 100 and even 110 throughout the month.

“We had no widespread rainfall to help cool things down and very little cloud cover due to the high pressure,” said Ted Whittock, a meteorologist with the weather service in Phoenix.

The monthly average temperature wasn’t the only record breaking in Phoenix this month. America’s hottest city also experienced temperatures over 110 degrees in recent days. The old record set on September 19, 2010 was repeatedly broken as temperatures rose above 110 degrees for five consecutive days, with the most recent record of 110 degrees set on September 29 when temperatures peaked out at 113 degrees.

It’s hot out there: Living and Dying in America’s Hottest City: A Week in the Heat of Phoenix

But even that record will be short-lived: Whittock is “almost certain” Sky Harbor will hit 110 degrees again on Tuesday.

September also recorded its hottest day on record, reaching 117 degrees on September 28th. This surpassed a record set earlier in the month, which had set an even earlier record for the hottest September day on September 1, 1950, with a high of 116 degrees.

This joins a number of other records set this year: Phoenix had the most days over 110 degrees, the most consecutive days over 100 degrees, and the hottest meteorological summer on record with an average temperature of 99 degrees.

While the high pressure system is keeping the Southwest unusually hot well into fall, climate change is also playing a role.

“With a changing climate, we are experiencing warming temperatures and an increasing frequency of extreme events,” Whittock said. “It could be that record or excessive heat develops early in the year and persists a little later. That suits this event.”

Phoenicians desperate for cooler temperatures and fall weather will have to lay low for a while longer.

There will be a slight weakening of the high pressure system on Wednesday and Thursday of this week, but Whittock said Phoenix will continue to experience above-average temperatures for at least the next two weeks.

This gives Phoenix time to get closer to another record. The metro area recorded 128 days with temperatures at or above 100 degrees, closing in on the record for most days with 100-degree highs set in 2020 (145 days).

The last day over 100 degrees was October 27, 2016, giving Phoenix a chance to make another entry into the record books this year if the heat continues.

Despite the gloomy forecast, Whittock is confident things will cool down soon.

“The only salvation is that the days are getting shorter, the nights are getting longer and the positions of the sun are getting lower and lower in the sky,” he said. “So it’s becoming increasingly difficult for us to detect these excessive heat conditions.”

Hayleigh Evans writes about extreme weather and related topics for The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. Email her with story tips [email protected].

September is the hottest on record for Phoenix as the heat wave continues

ByJasper

By Jasper

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