Tennessee is getting hotter, but part of the southeast global 'warming hole'

Mike Reicher | The Tennessean

Temperatures across Tennessee climbed an average of 1.6 degrees over the past 30 years, according to an analysis of climate data by the Associated Press.

The state warmed about as much as the national average during that time frame. But in the bigger picture, the Southeast's average temperature climbed slower than the nation's, and has historically risen slower than the global average.

Over the past hundred or so years, the region's average temperature has gone way up and way down, but the average is essentially flat, said Barry Keim, a professor at Louisiana State University and the Louisiana state climatologist. Meanwhile, the global average climbed.

In the late 1950s through the 1970s the southeast saw a dramatic drop in average temperatures, while globally, temperatures started to rise.

“The southeast is often called the warming hole,” Keim said. That term is used because the Southeast didn't warm as much as other parts of the world. "There is no great explanation for it. We’re all scratching our heads trying to explain this, figure this out.”

Nonetheless, the recent warming trend is undeniable and concerning, he said. The higher temperatures have been linked to heavier rainfall events and flooding, which has hit Middle Tennessee hard over the past 10 years.

More: Global warming cooks up 'a different world' over 3 decades

“Should we be worried? I’d say yes, even though the Southeast is bucking the trend a little bit,” he said.

Tennessee is divided into four climate zones, listed here rom the largest increase to the smallest, from 1988 to 2017:

The Cumberland Plateau temperatures climbed, on average, by 1.76 degrees. That ranks the region at 101 out of the nation’s 358 climate zones.

temperatures climbed, on average, by 1.76 degrees. That ranks the region at 101 out of the nation’s 358 climate zones. Middle Tennessee temperatures climbed 1.61 degrees, ranking 158th.

temperatures climbed 1.61 degrees, ranking 158th. Eastern Tennessee temperatures climbed 1.57 degrees, ranking 169th.

temperatures climbed 1.57 degrees, ranking 169th. Western Tennessee temperatures climbed 1.48 degrees, ranking 208th.

Source: U.S. Climate Divisional Data, NCDC / NOAA

Reach Mike Reicher at 615-259-8228 and on Twitter @mreicher.