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Countless weather records are dropped every year in the United States, but some rise to the top because of their historical significance.
Here's a look at 10 records that remain in place in 2023, covering everything from heavy rain and snowfall to record heat and cold.
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1. Fort Lauderdale topped with 110 inches of rain
Total precipitation in the South Florida city through December 18 was 111.9 inches, easily making it the wettest year on record, and more than 50 inches above average annual precipitation. Much of this year's swell rainfall totals can be attributed to a major flooding event in April that dumped more than 26 inches of inundation at the city's airport.
With the exception of several locations in the humid Alaskan rainforests of southeastern Alaska and Hilo, Hawaii, there are not many U.S. locations that see rainfall of more than 100 inches per year. One noteworthy location in the Lower 48 is Quillayute Airport near the Hoh Rain Forest on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, which sees up to 101.32 inches of rain annually.
2. Phoenix breaks record for 110 days
Valley of the Sun was one of more than 20 Southern cities that had their hottest summer in 2023, but it popped into the headlines for enduring 110-degree heat.
Phoenix broke the record 31-day streak of high temperatures over 110 degrees. This dwarfs the previous record of 18 consecutive days set in 1974.
For the entire year, the record was 55 days of 110 degrees or hotter, more than double the annual average of 21 days.
3. Mount Washington holds record for coldest wind chill
Extreme weather is nothing new on Mount Washington, New Hampshire, but the combination of bitterly cold Arctic air and strong winds created conditions that were eye-catching even by their standards.
A record wind temperature of 109 degrees below zero was observed at the summit on February 3, which the observatory said was “arguably the lowest wind temperature ever reported in U.S. history.”
Moreover, the observatory also reached an all-time record low of minus 47 degrees.
A view of Mount Washington Observatory on February 3, 2023.
(Mount Washington Observatory)
4. The Big Apple has the least snowy season in more than 150 years
All the records listed so far include the maximum, but for the next record, we'll do the opposite.
New York City's Central Park only fell 2.3 inches of snow during the last snow season that ended in the spring, and most of it fell in February. That broke the record for the lowest amount of snowfall in a season at 2.8 inches set in 1972-73.
What's even more amazing is that New York has one of the longest periods of snowfall in the United States, dating back to 1869. The average snowfall per season is nearly 30 inches (1991-2020).
Northeast Interstate 95 snow totals for the 2022-23 season.
5. Collection of statewide precipitation records for Kentucky
Western Kentucky was ravaged by historic flooding caused by rainfall that broke the state's record over a 24-hour period in July.
The weather station located 6 miles southwest of Mayfield, Kentucky, captured 11.28 inches of rain during the 24 hours ending at 1 p.m. CST on July 19. That broke the previous 24-hour Bluegrass state record of 10.5 inches set in Louisville on March 1. , 1997, according to NOAA's Committee on Climate Extremes.
If Mayfield looks familiar, it's because the city was struck by an EF4 tornado less than two years ago in December 2021.
Total expected rainfall. Areas shaded in white captured more than 7 inches of rain in the Kentucky floods.
(NOAA)
6. Chicago experiences extreme heat reaching 120 degrees
Late August usually reminds us that summer is coming to an end and will give way to the crisp feeling of fall, but not this year in the Windy City.
Hot temperatures combined with large amounts of air humidity caused the heat index at the official climate monitoring station in Chicago to reach 120 degrees on August 24. This was the highest heat index reading ever there, with the caveat that previous measurements of 1996 for this type of temperature were only measured once per hour.
As a reminder, the heat index is a “feel like” temperature which takes into account how hot it feels when humidity is taken into account.
7. Record wettest day ever in America's driest location
Former Hurricane Hillary contributed to rare August flooding in Southern California, giving Death Valley National Park its wettest day on record.
A total of 2.2 inches was measured on August 20, which broke the record for the most rain to fall in a single day since records began in 1911. The total also equals the average rainfall for an entire year.
The resulting flooding forced the closure of Death Valley National Park, leaving an estimated 400 people stranded in the park due to flooding and/or damaged roads, according to an Aug. 21 news release.
Floods in Death Valley National Park from Hillary in August 2023.
(National Park Service)
8. The northernmost city in the United States has its warmest day
The northernmost city in America, Utqiagvik, Alaska, made our list of most memorable records last year, and it will do so again in 2023.
The city of Utqiagvik, formerly known as Paro, experienced its warmest day on record with the average temperature reaching 66 degrees on August 5. This temperature is the average of the highest and lowest temperatures during the day, which were 76 and 56 degrees, respectively.
Surprisingly, the day's average temperature of 66 degrees broke the previous record of 63.5 degrees, which was tied less than a month ago.
It should also be noted that the high temperature that day was the third warmest temperature on record for the city and the low temperature was the warmest on record by 3 degrees, according to Alaska-based climate scientist Brian Brettschneider.
9. An epic snow year for California ski resorts
Storms fed by wet rivers buried California's Sierra Nevada region with heavy snow while floods inundated lower elevations at the beginning of the year.
Mammoth Mountain in the Southern Sierra reported a record 715 inches of snow for the season at their headquarters, and nearly 900 inches at the summit. Snowfall records at the main lodge go back to the 1969-1970 season.
Further north, some ski resorts in the Lake Tahoe area also recorded record snow totals. The sky reached 577 inches and Kirkwood accumulated 708 inches, according to the Reno Gazette-Journal.
A snow survey conducted by the California Department of Water Resources in early April found that statewide snowpack was 237% of average, making it one of the largest snowpacks on record for the season.
Snow covers the view from a 15-foot window in the Lake Tahoe area on February 27, 2023.
((Sarah Luna/Twitter))
10. The winter heat wave breaks monthly records
The weather was shorts and t-shirts in parts of the South, Ohio Valley and mid-Atlantic during a late February heat wave that brought the warmest temperatures on record for a winter month (December-February).
One such record was set in Nashville, Tennessee, where the temperature reached 85 degrees on February 23. This is equivalent to the warmest location in Volunteer State during the winterAccording to world weather records expert Maximiliano Herrera.
Atlanta (81 degrees on February 22) and Raleigh, North Carolina (85 degrees on February 23) are two other locations setting new all-time highs for any winter month.
With the onset of this heat wave, some locations in the West and Plains recorded record low daily temperatures.
A late February weather pattern that set the hottest winter ever recorded in parts of the East while some areas of the Plains saw record daily lows.
Chris Dolce He has been a senior meteorologist at Weather.com for over 10 years after starting his career with The Weather Channel in the early 2000s.
The Weather Company's primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment, and the importance of science in our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
