August Tied All-Time Global Heat Record As Temperatures Soared In Tuscaloosa

TUSCALOOSA, AL — August 2026 tied the record for the hottest month ever measured globally, while Tuscaloosa experienced a notably hot and dry month of its own.

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According to a report published Thursday by AccuWeather, the global average surface air temperature reached 62.5 degrees in August, making it the hottest August on record and essentially tying July 2023 as the warmest month in data dating to 1940.

The Copernicus Climate Change Service calculated August's global temperature at 1.65 degrees Celsius, or 2.97 degrees Fahrenheit, above the estimated preindustrial average from 1850-1900.

It was the first month since November 2025 to rise more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above that benchmark.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which uses a different dataset and methodology, also ranked August as the world's hottest August in its 177-year record. NOAA said the global surface temperature was 2.38 degrees above the 20th-century average, while North America recorded its hottest August on record.

Tuscaloosa's Hot, Dry August

While making headlines across the globe, the heat was certainly no secret to West Alabama residents.

National Weather Service data from Tuscaloosa showed an average monthly temperature of 84.1 degrees, which was 2.6 degrees above normal.

Temperatures reached at least 90 degrees on 28 of the month's 31 days, with a monthly high of 103 degrees on Aug. 17.

Tuscaloosa also received just 1.02 inches of rain during August, which was 3.34 inches below normal, according to preliminary National Weather Service climate data.

AccuWeather reported that record-hot oceans and a rapidly strengthening El Niño helped drive the extraordinary global warmth.

The average sea surface temperature outside the polar regions reached 69.9 degrees, the highest August average on record and tied with March 2024 for the highest recorded during any month.

AccuWeather meteorologists said the combination of unusually warm oceans, long-term warming and the developing El Niño could have implications well beyond summer, potentially shifting storm tracks, rainfall and temperature patterns during the fall and winter.

Patch previously reported that those developing El Niño conditions will be worth watching as the state moves toward the cooler months, when El Niño can influence weather patterns across the Southeast.

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