If you asked, many New Jerseyans would probably classify this summer as unusually cool, but that's not actually the case. In fact, New Jersey's official climate expert says this past June through August was exactly what a Garden State summer is supposed to feel like.

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August was the coolest of the past three months, but as a whole, the three-month period registered a statewide average temperature of 72.1 degrees, less than a degree away from the normal.

"If you look at the last 120 summers, this was the 53rd warmest," said David Robinson, the state climatologist at Rutgers University. "But that means it was only the 67th coolest."

Robinson said New Jersey residents are thrown off by this past season because the previous four summers were unusually warm. Each ranked among the 15 warmest summers on record.

"We were on quite a roll with hot summers, making this year feel all the more comfortable," Robinson added.

The state saw a little more than a foot of rain from June 1 to Aug. 31. It was the 59th wettest summer.

Robinson said it will be interesting to see if the recent cooler-than-average weather pattern will maintain itself during the coming weeks. It would still be comfortable for New Jerseyans until October arrives.

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