A new report from the National Climatic Data Center shows 2012 set a record in the U-S for the highest average temperature for a year and for a month (July), with every state recording an above-average temperature, 19 setting yearly records, and two…Nebraska and Wyoming…setting records for the hottest and driest years on record.

The U.S. Climate Extremes Index…which evaluates extremes in temperature, precipitation, and landfalling tropical cyclones..showed 2012 was the second most extreme year on record…trailing only 1998…the previous hottest year…and coming in at nearly twice the average value.

There were 11 different weather disasters that caused more than $1 billion in damage, including Superstorm Sandy and the drought, while wildfires charred 9.2-million acres…the 3rd-highest on record.

Despite the drought, 2012 was only the 15th driest year nationally…coming in at just under 26.6″ of precipitation or about 2-1/2″ less than normal.

U.S. temperature records go back to 1895, with the yearly average based on reports from more than 1,200 weather stations across the Lower 48 states.

The average temperature in the U-S for last year was 55.32 degrees Fahrenheit…a full degree warmer than the old 1998 record and 3.2 degrees warmer than the average for the entire 20th century.

In Nebraska…Harrisburg, Sidney, McCook, Benkelman, Springview, and Trenton all set new records for their highest-ever recorded temperature with Harrisburg and Sidney doing it twice. Also setting new high records were Evanston, Wyo, and Edgemont and Hill City, SD.