Study: 2012 Hottest Half-Year on Record, Can You Tell?

So far 2012 has been the warmest half of year on record, according a new study by the NOAA National Climatic Data Center, which might come as no surprise to locals who've had to deal with 90-plus temperatures on a regular basis this summer.

According to the study, the past 12 months have had an average temperature of 56 degrees, which is 3.2 degrees higher than normal, Huffington Post reported.

From Huffington Post:

For a large portion of the contiguous U.S., these first six months were also drier than average. The U.S. Drought Monitor showed that as of July 3, 56 percent of the contiguous U.S. is experiencing drought conditions. In June, wildfires burned over 1.3 million acres, the second most on record for the month.

As for that brutally hot June? More than 170 all-time warm temperature records were broken or tied last month.

Locally, we've seen people rushing and public pools to fight the prolonged heat, but we wonder if locals agree that this summer seems hotter than normal. Does it, and how has that affected you locally? Let us know in the comments.