September 1, 2022: Cattle in Brigham City aren't taking any chances, and are cooling off in the Bear River near Brigham City. (Chris Williams)
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah’s hottest summer on record is now in the books. In a tweet on Thursday, the National Weather Service reported the warmest June, July and August in Utah since the agency started keeping records.
Temperatures are recorded at the Salt Lake City International Airport.
The previous record for the warmest meteorological was set in 2021 at 80.9 degrees while the record for the daily heat was set at 98 degrees in 1950. This summer broke both records.
KSL Meteorologist, Matt Johnson told KSL NewsRadio there are several contributing factors that, combined, are heating things up so much across Utah.
“The Great Salt Lake is at historically low levels,” Johnson said. “Typically we rely on that lake breeze to cool things down come early afternoon.”
Johnson said that the lake breeze has been weaker and is showing up later in the day.
Soil moisture is another contributing factor.
“We’re in the middle of a severe drought,” Johnson said, “and the drier that your soil is, the easier it is to move that temperature to the hot side … the land is able to heat things more quickly and more efficiently.”
A recent update on Utah drought conditions showed that soil moisture was slightly above normal for this time of year, thanks to summer monsoons.
Southern Utah isn’t faring any better. The National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory, saying that temperatures could reach 110 degrees around St. George through next week.
Don Brinkerhoff contributed to this report.