SAN FRANCISCO – As most of the U.S. sweltered in mid-July 2022 − when temperatures in many major cities reached the high 90s and even triple digits − a national weather map showed San Francisco topping out at 65 degrees.
It was just a typical foggy summer day in the city by the bay, which averaged 62 degrees that month, about the same as the next two Julys.
Now the advent of climate change raises the question of whether summertime visitors will stop rushing out to buy sweatshirts upon arrival and instead feel perfectly comfortable in shorts and T-shirts.
The future of San Francisco’s iconic fog has been debated in media stories during recent years, and some experts note a diminished cloud cover along the California coast that could lead to a warming trend.
But few if any detect signs that San Francisco’s summer chill is going away like the once-celebrated Fog City Diner, which shut down at the end of May.
