July 2, 2012
A string of 100-plus-degree days is scorching the region. Record-breaking heat burned 16 Tennessee counties and broke 25 heat records in 2011. The same year had record-breaking rainfall in 21 counties and a total of 27 broken rainfall records, along with seven more broken snowfall records.
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In general, according to Texas Tech climatologist Katherine Hayhoe, who has done climate-modeling studies at the school, many midlatitude areas are expected to warm faster -- and Tennessee, North Georgia and North Alabama are midlatitude.