July was hottest month on record in contiguous US: NOAA

July marked the hottest month on record in the contiguous U.S., according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).  Temperatures in the mainland 48 states and Washington, D.C., averaged 76.9 degrees Fahrenheit. That was roughly 0.1 to 0.2 degrees hotter than July 1936 and July 2012, according to the NOAA, which has records dating…