A massive heat wave this coming week will affect most of the contiguous United States, but record temperatures have already struck in Alaska, where a high of 88 degrees in Fairbanks on Wednesday was warmer than New York City. A town called Deadhorse on Alaska's northern coast, inside the Arctic Circle, hit an all-time high of 85, nearly 30 degrees above its typical temperature for this time of year.
For those of us in the lower 48 — especially in the Great Plains, Midwest, and Southeast regions — the upcoming heat wave, with highs in the 100s throughout the center of the country, may make July the hottest month on record in America.
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