The U.S. Weather by the Numbers

The United States has continued to see scorching temperatures as a heat wave bakes much of the Northern Hemisphere. Here’s what the numbers tell us about the heat and how it’s affecting Americans:

Tuesday marked 19 straight days of temperatures at or above 110 degrees in Phoenix, breaking the 18-day streak set in 1974.
Phoenix also set a record on Monday for the number of consecutive days — eight — when the low temperature was in the 90s.
More than 86 million people in the United States live in areas that were expected to see dangerous heat levels on Wednesday.
For 33 days, El Paso has reached temperatures at or above 100 degrees.
Sacramento and Stockton, Calif., both reached 109 degrees on Sunday, record highs for the date.
Las Vegas is under an excessive heat warning through Saturday, with temperatures expected to reach 113 degrees this week.
Las Vegas, N.M., recorded its highest temperature ever when it hit 100 degrees in the city on Tuesday.
A monitoring station in Hoonah, Alaska, in the state’s southeast panhandle, hit a record high of 78 degrees on Tuesday, breaking the record for that date by one degree. The area’s high temperatures for July are typically closer to 63 degrees.
Boise Airport, in Idaho, hit 105 degrees on Sunday, 11 degrees warmer than normal for that date.
Canadian wildfire smoke has made its way to the South. Atlanta had an air quality index of 151 on Tuesday. A number above 100 is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups, and one above 200 is considered unhealthy for everyone.
San Angelo, Texas, hit 110 degrees on Tuesday, the 20th day this year it has been 105 degrees or higher there. Last year’s total was 23. There was not a day in 2021 that exceeded 105 degrees.