RALEIGH -- You're not imagining it if you thought June was hotter than normal in Raleigh.
The National Weather Service announced today that last month was the warmest June on record for Raleigh with an average temperature of 81.5 degrees. Records have been kept since 1887.
Last month, 27 of the 30 days recorded average temperature above normal. At Raleigh-Durham International Airport, 22 days had high temperatures of at least 90 degrees.
Seven daily temperature records were broken in June with one tie. Six record high minimum temperatures were either tied or broken last month June. The high temperature of the month was recorded on Sunday at 101 degrees.
Before this year, the warmest June in Raleigh was in 2008 with an average temperature of 80.8 degrees. Before then, you had to go back to the 1950s for a June with an average temperature of at least 80 degrees.
Get the biggest news in your email or cellphone as it's happening. Sign up for breaking news alerts.
Low temperatures for Saturday and Sunday will be in the 20s, according to Kathleen Carroll, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Raleigh. 
For the last several years, Tim Samaras has led TWISTEX - Tactical Weather Instrument Sampling in/near Tornadoes Experiments - one of three pursuit teams on Discovery Channel's "Storm Chasers." 
The most powerful storm of the winter season pounded Colorado with up to 6 feet of snow in the Rocky Mountain foothills and forced the cancellation of more than 600 flights in Denver before heading east toward the central plains. 
Wake County residents who sought the meteorological wisdom of groundhogs Wednesday got a decidedly mixed message. 
Every Feb. 2, a slew of weather-predicting rodents lift their noses in the air to test winter's strength, offering groundhog-hole predictions from Punxsutawney, Pa., down to Lilburn. Ga. But the best guesser comes from Garner. 
Pennsylvania's Punxsutawney Phil told people to prepare for six more weeks of winter on Thursday, making him the minority opinion among his groundhog brethren who seem to think that spring is coming early. 
Winter's one-month birthday passed in Raleigh without an icicle, a snowflake or a day below freezing - great news if you sell popsicles, bad luck if you sell sleds. Keep up with the latest stories with our free local news e-mail newsletters, delivered straight to your inbox!
Subscribe to Afternoon Update - it's free!
Subscribe to Breaking News - it's free!
Subscribe to Local & State News - it's free!
Subscribe to Today at a Glance - it's free!
Subscribe to Crime & Safety - it's free!
Subscribe to Education - it's free!
Subscribe to Health & Science - it's free!
