E PA/NJ/DE Summer 2026 Obs/Discussion

[PhiEaglesfan712]

With Memorial Day in the rearview mirror, it's now time to start the summer thread.

We have a developing strong/super el nino. Such summers are known for producing cooler than normal summers in the Eastern US. Such years include 1972, 1982, 1986, 1997, 2009, and 2023.

[The Iceman]

4 hours ago, PhiEaglesfan712 said:

With Memorial Day in the rearview mirror, it's now time to start the summer thread.

We have a developing strong/super el nino. Such summers are known for producing cooler than normal summers in the Eastern US. Such years include 1972, 1982, 1986, 1997, 2009, and 2023.

I don't like to look ahead further than 15-20 days but first half of the month is looking normal maybe slightly below? Unfortunately looks dry as well so even though we got a brief respite from drought conditions. The nino precip anomalies are much more pronounced in the fall and winter months, it could be a few months before the drought truly breaks. 

[ChescoWx]

As we get into the summer months lower elevation (<450 ft asl) areas of Chester County PA will see at least one heat wave (defined as 3 or more consecutive days with highs at 90 degrees or above) while the relatively higher ridge locations (>600 ft asl) only average a heat wave every couple of years or so. Below sorted by highest to lowest elevation is a ranking of all reporting stations since 2000 with their recorded heat waves. Our lowest elevation spot at Phoenixville averages a whopping two to four times the number of heat waves as almost all other locations across the county.

[ChescoWx]

Even the longest running and warmest station in Chester County at Phoenixville has a clear trend toward less of the so called "heat waves"