Last month, we had a week or so of summer-like weather here in Boulder - temperatures in the mid-70s, which felt unseasonably warm for early spring. (The following week it snowed.) But it turns out we weren't alone, here in the foothills of the Rockies. April 2006 was the warmest April in the U.S. since record-keeping began back in 1895, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Across the country, the average temperature was 4.5 degrees warmer than the 20th century average.

Not a single state in the continental U.S. was cooler than average in April, and 12 states experienced their hottest April ever. NOAA also reported that the global surface temperature - the average temperature of the Earth's surface - was the seventh warmest ever for the month.

In other weather news, as we enter Hurricane Preparedness Week (who knew?), NOAA is predicting a "very active hurricane season" in the north Atlantic this year: "13 to 16 named storms, with eight to 10 becoming hurricanes, of which four to six could become 'major' hurricanes of Category 3 strength or higher," according to a NOAA administrator. By comparison, last year in the north Atlantic there were 11 named storms, six hurricanes, and two major hurricanes. The storm predictions are based on water temperatures (warmer ocean water fuels more hurricanes) and wind patterns.

Hurricane season begins June 1.

Image credit: NOAA