Chart assignment

Charts to read and discuss

Read each chart, then answer its questions. Every chart shows its source and date; open it for a table of the numbers and the data to download.

  1. How have the last 12 months compared with normal in the US?

Chart 1 of 1 · Climate

How have the last 12 months compared with normal in the US?

The interactive chart needs JavaScript. The numbers are on the chart's page.

Of the 12 months from October 2025 to September 2026, March 2026 was the warmest compared with normal across the contiguous US, 9.4°F above its 1901–2000 average for that month. May 2026 was the coolest compared with normal, at 1.5°F (below zero means colder than average). Each bar compares a month with the same month's average, so a warm January and a warm July are measured alike.

Questions to discuss

  1. In one sentence of your own, what does this chart show?
  2. Find the biggest change or difference in the chart. What might explain it?
  3. Who collected these numbers, and how recent are they? What else would you want to know before drawing a conclusion?

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance (Public domain (U.S. government work)) · Data as of Sep 30, 2026

Open the chart and its numbers

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