Why is it hotter two months AFTER the longest day of the year than it is on the actual longest day of the year? Is it because heat builds up in the atmosphere and in the water?
Something like that. There's heat that hasn't had time to escape the atmosphere at night, and there's still an above-average amount of sunlight each day until the autumnal equinox.
The reverse is true in winter. That's why the last week of January is usually the coldest week of the year even though the winter solstice is December 21.
It's called "seasonal lag" and untexan is right on the description. The same thing happens day in and day out too... 12:00 noon is usually not the hottest point of the day. That is called 'diurnal lag' :)
- David, "C" meteorology student at Penn State, 2001
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The reverse is true in winter. That's why the last week of January is usually the coldest week of the year even though the winter solstice is December 21.
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- David, "C" meteorology student at Penn State, 2001
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