Here’s how hot summer was in Chicago the year you were born

(NEXSTAR) – Do you swear that it wasn’t this hot back in the day? Depending on when you grew up, that might be true.

To test that hypothesis, we asked Climate Central, an organization of scientists and journalists who study climate change, to analyze summer temperatures in Chicago dating back to 1940. We compiled it into a table (below) so you can look and see if the summers when you were young were as hot as the ones we are experiencing now.

For just about everyone around the world, the suspicion is that it’s gotten hotter since the days when you used to play at the park or attend summer camp. Just this past Sunday, the Earth recorded its hottest day ever. That record was broken again on Monday. A slight temperature drop on Tuesday made it the world’s second-hottest day.

In Chicago, the picture is complicated. If you grew up in the 1950s, you may remember how hot the summers were that decade. Highs were in the mid-80s, on average, while low temperatures didn’t cool down much below the mid-60s. Warm nights like that can be dangerous, health experts warn, because they don’t give people’s homes or bodies enough time to cool off.

The 1970s and 1980s were a summer weather rollercoaster ride, with some years having temperature summer seasons followed by heat waves.

The hottest summer in recent memory appears to be 2020, when the average high temperature between June and August topped 86 degrees. Only time will tell if the summer of 2024 will beat that.

Use the searchable table below to see how hot summers used to be when you were born or when you were growing up, and see how it has changed since then.

Having trouble seeing the table above? Click or tap here to open it in a new window .

The planet has been on a “hot streak” since April 2023, Climate Central says , where month after month has seen record-breaking global temperatures.

Of the 230 cities analyzed by Climate Central, 95% of them have seen summers grow hotter since 1970. The “urban heat island” effect can also make it feel even hotter in certain neighborhoods.

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