| vivster said: Those graphs are a bit misleading as it includes the colder June days. 80F are a normal summer temperature in Germany and not even considered that hot. 90F is quite frequent in the middle of summer. We also get extreme temperatures like 100F. Considering that you already need air conditioning from 80F up, weather is certainly not the reason why they're so unusual here. It's a cultural thing. |
Sure, American convenience culture and the cheaper cost of electricity also play a part, but I still contend that the main point is the hot temperature for longer extended periods of time. A 90F day once in a while is very different from 90F for most of the days between late May and early September which many U.S states experience. There is also the issue of an overall higher humidity in the United States, which makes it harder to maintain a lower body temperature because sweating is less effective with more saturated air. The United States just has longer and more consistently warm weather than Northern Europe. This is a fact.
Consider Pittsburgh's average July temperature of 82F, and at the same latitude is Majorca and Sardinia in the mediterranean with average July temperatures of 85F and 77F respectively. And remember again, Pittsburgh is a northern city in the U.S. The average high in July in New Orleans, for example, is 91F. The average July high temperatures in the following German cities are: Berlin - 75F , Hamburg -72F, Dresden -74F, Frankfurt - 77F, Munich - 74F, Nuremberg - 75F, about the same from North to South, mostly due to elevation differences compensating for latitude probably. Source (https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/Germany/temperature-july.php) Now here are some U.S cities: Atlanta - 89, Austin - 96, Baltimore - 87, Birmingham - 91, Boston - 81, Dallas - 96, Columbus - 85, Buffalo - 80, Detroit - 83. The only cities with anything close to Germany's July temperatures are Seattle - 76, San Fransisco - 67, and San Diego - 75, all of which are along the coastal west, which has more temperate temperatures than the east coast during July and actually have their peak temperatures in September. Source (https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/US/average-city-temperatures-in-july.php)
