2012 marked the warmest year on record for the contiguous United States
NOAA's State of the Climate report for October shows drought across 60.2% of the contiguous United States. Elsewhere, Pacific Ocean monitoring indicates that a weak El Nino system associated with wetter winters in Southern California and the Southwest has petered out into neutral conditions.
NOAA's October State of the Climate update shows January through September 2012 the warmest first nine months of any year on record.
Summer 2012 significant temperature recordings and events from NOAA's "State of the Climate" page
