New Brunswick, N.J. (Aug. 2, 2019) – Rutgers University–New Brunswick Professor David A. Robinson, the New Jersey State Climatologist, can provide insight on one of the warmest and wettest Julys in New Jersey since recordkeeping began in 1895.
“July 2019 will go into the record books as yet another in a series of above-average summer months that have been experienced throughout New Jersey in recent years,” said Robinson, a professor in the Department of Geography who oversees the Rutgers NJ Weather Network. “While final numbers are not yet available, the preliminary statewide average temperature of 77.6 degrees makes this July the seventh warmest in the last 125 years. Eleven of the 20 warmest Julys on record have all occurred since 2002, and six of the warmest eight Julys have occurred in just this decade.”
Last month was also likely to be among the 30 wettest Julys on record, according to Robinson, who works in the School of Arts and Sciences and helps coordinate the New Jersey Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network. A preliminary estimate of statewide average rainfall is 5.94 inches, which is 1.37 inches above normal. Northern counties were wettest with 7.05 inches, while southern ones came in at 5.34 inches.
“While day-to-day and even year-to-year fluctuations in monthly temperatures are a function of prevailing weather patterns, the underlying cause of the elevated warmth in New Jersey and globally since the turn of this century is the result of human activities,” Robinson said. “This July’s warmth is thus a combination of global climate change and a generally persistent southerly flow of warm, moist air into the region.
Robinson is available to comment at [email protected] or 848-445-4741.
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