Mid-Atlantic Climate Impacts Summary and Outlook: Spring 2021

MARISA Mid-Atlantic Regional Climate Summary map and title

Thunderstorms, tornadoes, and flash floods were among this summer's severe weather events in the Mid-Atlantic region. Some locations recorded their warmest summer on record, and temperatures were above normal for most of the region.

Read more about regional climate trends, and explore historic and future growing degree days (GDD), in the latest MARISA Seasonal Climate Impacts Summary and Outlook.

Highlights

The majority of the Mid-Atlantic experienced temperatures 1-2 degrees Fahrenheit (F) above normal and some sites had among one of their warmest summers on record.
This summer, the Mid-Atlantic saw generally above normal precipitation, notably in southern New York and northern Pennsylvania, while some areas in Maryland, Virginia, and the panhandle of West Virginia experienced below normal precipitation.
The Mid-Atlantic saw a large number of severe weather events, including strong thunderstorms, tornadoes, and flash flooding.
Four tropical storms impacted the region, generally bringing heavy rain and flash flooding.
An analysis of historic and future projected growing degree days (GDDs) shows that the average annual number of GDDs from 1981 to 2020 has already increased, and the region may experience future increases in average annual GDDs greater than 40 percent.

Read the Climate Summary

The MARISA Seasonal Climate Impacts Summary and Outlook is a seasonal series produced by NOAA’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments program that details seasonal weather and climate variability and change in the Mid-Atlantic region.

MARISA is led by the non-profit RAND Corporation, in partnership with researchers in Penn State University’s Earth and Environmental Systems Institute, and Johns Hopkins University, along with support from researchers in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Cornell University, and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.