Publication Date December 9, 2015 | Weather Underground

After Warmest Autumn on Record, December Mildness Sweeps Across U.S.

United States
A compromised U.S. Highway 12 west of White Pass, Washington, on Wednesday morning, December 9, 2015. White Pass is located in the Cascades just south of Mount Rainier. A 58-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 12 is now closed between Packwood and Naches. Photo: Washington State Department of Transportation
A compromised U.S. Highway 12 west of White Pass, Washington, on Wednesday morning, December 9, 2015. White Pass is located in the Cascades just south of Mount Rainier. A 58-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 12 is now closed between Packwood and Naches. Photo: Washington State Department of Transportation
Meteorological autumn (September – November) was the warmest in 121 years of recordkeeping for the 48 contiguous U.S. states, according to NOAA’s national wrapup of November and fall conditions released Wednesday morning. The national average of 56.8°F was a full 3.3°F above the 20th-century average and 0.2°F above the previous record of 56.6°F (Sep-Nov 1963). Only one state (Florida) had its warmest autumn on record, but the nation as a whole still came out on top because of the rare coast-to-coast nature of the warmth.