When does summer start in Ohio? There's more than one answer
Days filled with sunshine, temperatures above 70 degrees and patio season.
They're some of what many Ohioans are looking forward to this summer and have likely already gotten to enjoy this year.
But Ohio is actually only a little more than a month into spring. Several weeks remain until the season changes and higher temperatures become the norm.
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Depending on how the next month or so shake out, this summer has the potential to be an average one or a real scorcher, experts told The Dispatch.
"It's really hard to say where summer will go," said Geddy, Davis, program coordinator at the State Climate Office of Ohio.
Until forecasts become clearer, here's what we know now about what to expect this summer.
When does summer really start?
The official start of summer is June 21.
Summer begins every year on what's called the summer solstice, according to the National Weather Service.
The summer solstice occurs at the moment the Earth's tilt toward the sun is at a maximum. That day, the sun reaches its highest elevation at noon, according to the National Weather Service.
The summer solstice is also the longest day of sunlight in the United States and Canada.
Unofficially, many Americans celebrate the start of summer around Memorial Day, which is set for May 29 this year.
What does the Farmer's Almanac say?
The Farmers' Almanac considers June 1 to be the "meteorological start of summer."
The almanac is predicting what it's calling a "warm-to-hot soggy" summer for Ohio and much of the Midwest.
People across the Ohio Valley should expect thunderstorms to kick off the start of summer in late June, according to the Farmers' Almanac. Temperatures may often exceed 90 degrees and could even top 100 in much of the country throughout the summer.
Higher than usual precipitation could make it a very humid summer, according to the Farmers' Almanac forecast, which is based on what it calls a "proprietary formula" that includes many factors, one being the moon. That humidity could also make it seem warmer than it already will be, the almanac predicts.
The almanac maintains that its forecasts are 80 to 85% accurate.
What does the science say?
It's still too early to say how swelteringly hot this summer will be, experts told The Dispatch.
Right now, projections are calling for a summer with average temperatures or slightly above average temperatures, said Aaron Wilson, climatologist at the State Climate Office of Ohio and an assistant professor at Ohio State University. The latest projections are also calling for it to be a wetter summer, though like predictions about temperatures, that too could change, Wilson said.
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Right now, the U.S. is exiting a period of La Niña, a weather phenomenon that typically causes cooler temperatures in the north and warmer ones in the south during winter. It can also lead to a harsher hurricane season, according to the National Weather Service.
As La Niña ends, the nation will be entering a weather pattern called El Niño.
The El Niño pattern occurs when warmer waters cause the Pacific jet stream to move south. That change causes northern parts of the U.S. to experience warmer and dryer weather, according to the National Weather Service.
mfilby@dispatch.com
@MaxFilby
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: When does summer start? Here's what you need to know
