September--the long sunburnt afternoon of summer.

August was extraordinarily hot. We had a monthly average of 85.3, our warmest August on record, breaking the record set last year. We reached 90 or more for the last 30 days of the month, the most 90 degree days ever recorded in August, and our second longest streak of 90 degrees or higher on record. We did not reach 90 on September 1st, so our record for consecutive days of 90+ is safe for the year.

September is a summer month in south GA. Warm and as humid as any month. For the first 2 weeks of September, heat continues as in August---after that some cool fronts can come and temper the heat from time to time. Rainfall begins to decrease dramatically the last week of the month.

Average high temperatures fall at a slowly accelerating rate by 5.7 degrees between August 31 and September 30. Low temperatures fall very slowly during the first 10 days of September, then speed up their fall, decreasing by 6.1 degrees between August 31 and September 30. About half of Septembers get down into the 50s, and I hope this year is one of them!

A web briefing by the JAX NWS office about the summer of 2011 can be viewed here.

The technical weather discussion from the JAX wx office can be read here.

And the official climate reports for St. Simons Island and other local stations can be viewed here.

And the weather observations for St. Simons Island for the past 72 hours can be viewed here.

Date..............actual..............normal................departure.............notes

Sep 1...........74.3 / 85.8.......73.6 / 86.7...........-0.1
Sep 2...........68.9 / 85.5.......73.6 / 86.6...........-2.9
Sep 3...........71.1 / 86.0.......73.5 / 86.5...........-1.4
Sep 4...........70.9 / 86.7.......73.5 / 86.4...........-1.1....................1.00" rain
Sep 5...........70.9 / 87.6.......73.3 / 86.2...........-0.5....................0.07" rain
Sep 6...........70.9 / 82.0.......73.3 / 86.1...........-3.2....................lowest average diurnal range.
Sep 7...........64.4 / 82.4.......73.2 / 86.0...........-6.2....................lowest average diurnal range.
Sep 8...........61.7 / 80.6.......73.0 / 85.9...........-8.3
Sep 9...........63.1 / 83.8.......72.8 / 85.8...........-5.8
Sep 10.........67.1 / 84.6.......72.7 / 85.6...........-3.3
Sep 11.........70.9 / 85.8.......72.5 / 85.4...........-0.6
Sep 12.........70.9 / 86.2.......72.3 / 85.2...........-0.2
Sep 13.........68.9 / 87.6.......72.1 / 85.1...........-0.3
Sep 14.........71.4 / 85.3.......71.9 / 84.9...........-0.0
Sep 15.........72.0 / 91.0.......71.7 / 84.7..........+3.3
Sep 16.........70.9 / 82.0.......71.6 / 84.6...........-1.6
Sep 17.........62.8 / 75.7.......71.3 / 84.4...........-8.6
Sep 18.........64.4 / 75.9.......71.1 / 84.2...........-7.5...................0.87 feet / 1,170 cfs flow in Altamaha river.
Sep 19.........66.9 / 80.4.......70.8 / 84.0...........-3.7
Sep 20.........71.2 / 82.4.......70.6 / 83.8...........-0.4...................0.41" rain
Sep 21.........72.1 / 82.6.......70.4 / 83.7..........+0.3...................0.12" rain
Sep 22.........73.0 / 86.0.......70.1 / 83.5..........+2.7...................last day of late summer
Sep 23.........72.5 / 86.0.......69.9 / 83.3..........+2.6...................first day of early fall.......0.14" rain
Sep 24.........70.9 / 85.6.......69.5 / 83.1..........+1.9
Sep 25.........70.9 / 88.0.......69.3 / 82.8..........+3.4...................0.73" rain
Sep 26.........68.7 / 85.6.......69.0 / 82.5..........+1.4...................0.55" rain
Sep 27.........69.4 / 85.1.......68.7 / 82.2..........+1.8
Sep 28.........71.8 / 87.6.......68.3 / 81.9..........+4.6
Sep 29.........68.5 / 83.1.......67.9 / 81.6..........+1.0
Sep 30.........69.6 / 86.7.......67.6 / 81.3..........+3.7

Highs for 2011

40s...........4
50s.........20
60s.........33
70s.........47
80s.........95
90s.........73
100s.........1

Lows for 2011

20s..........4
30s.........15
40s.........27
50s.........49
60s.........44
70s.......125
80s...........9

Freezes.......6

On September 8, St. Simons Island had a record low of 63, breaking the old record low of 64 set in 1972.
On September 9, St. Simons Island had a record low of 64, breaking the old record low of 65 set in 1956.

Light In August

August is a slow, sluggish month. Sometimes I think it is the longest month of the year. The days shorten steadily, yet temperatures do not respond much. Nighttime temperatures barely fall at all. Daytime highs fall nearly twice as much as nighttime lows--more than 2 degrees, vs 1.

And yet there are some changes compared to July. August is our rainiest month of the year, according to our new climate normals for 1981-2010, that honor previously belonging to September. And towards the end of the month, there is a change to the quality of light--by the end of August the sun fails to reach 70 degrees in altitude, even at solar noon. And tropical activity picks up markedly as August wears on.

August got to a good start this month, with 3.77" of rain in the home gauge before 4 a.m. Not a drought buster, but a drought denter, yes! It was our heaviest rain at home since 3.82" on August 31, 2009. Officially at KSSI there was 2.72", not a daily record.

Emily was not a factor. Irene won't be much of one besides marine influence.

Date..............actual..............normal................departure.............notes

Aug 1...........72.3 / 83.5.......75.2 / 89.3...........-4.3.....................3.77" rain
Aug 2...........74.7 / 88.0.......75.2 / 89.3...........-0.9
Aug 3...........74.5 / 90.5.......75.1 / 89.3..........+0.6
Aug 4...........77.9 / 95.4.......75.1 / 89.3..........+4.4
Aug 5...........78.3 / 90.7.......75.0 / 89.2..........+2.4
Aug 6...........78.4 / 89.1.......75.0 / 89.1..........+1.7
Aug 7...........78.3 / 94.6.......74.9 / 89.1..........+4.4
Aug 8...........77.2 / 94.5.......74.8 / 89.0..........+3.9
Aug 9...........74.5 / 94.6.......74.8 / 89.0..........+2.7.....................0.01" rain
Aug 10.........73.4 / 92.7.......74.8 / 88.9..........+1.2
Aug 11.........75.9 / 96.1.......74.7 / 88.8..........+4.2
Aug 12.........73.4 / 96.1.......74.7 / 88.7..........+3.0.....................0.03" rain
Aug 13.........71.2 / 89.6.......74.7 / 88.6...........-1.2.....................0.40" rain
Aug 14.........72.5 / 93.0.......74.7 / 88.5..........+1.1.....................0.29" rain
Aug 15..........74.3 / 92.5......74.7 / 88.4..........+1.8
Aug 16..........70.7 / 89.8......74.6 / 88.3...........-1.9
Aug 17..........72.0 / 88.0......74.6 / 88.2...........-1.4....................0.11" rain
Aug 18..........75.2 / 88.7......74.5 / 88.1..........+0.6
Aug 19..........72.1 / 87.8......74.5 / 88.0...........-1.3
Aug 20..........75.2 / 88.0......74.5 / 88.0..........+0.3
Aug 21..........76.6 / 88.9......74.4 / 87.9..........+1.6
Aug 22..........76.3 / 93.9......74.3 / 87.7..........+3.6
Aug 23..........75.6 / 87.1......74.2 / 87.6..........+0.4
Aug 24..........75.7 / 88.5......74.2 / 87.5..........+1.2
Aug 25..........72.7 / 89.2......74.1 / 87.4..........+0.2....................0.02" rain
Aug 26..........73.6 / 87.7......74.1 / 87.2..........+0.0....................0.28" rain..........29.66" (1004.5 mb)
Aug 27..........74.7 / 95.4......74.0 / 87.1..........+4.5....................29.58" (1001.7 mb)
Aug 28..........74.5 / 91.0......73.9 / 87.1..........+2.2....................29.66" (1002.9 mb)
Aug 29..........73.0 / 90.1......73.9 / 87.0..........+1.1
Aug 30..........75.2 / 88.3......73.8 / 87.0..........+1.3
Aug 31..........72.1 / 87.4......73.7 / 86.9...........-0.5....................0.32" rain

Highs

40s..........4
50s.........20
60s.........33
70s.........46
80s.........70
90s.........69
100s.........1

Lows

20s..........4
30s.........15
40s.........27
50s.........49
60s.........36
70s........104
80s...........8

Freezes.......6

A new record high was set on August 7, 98 degrees. This beat the old record of 97 set in 1984 and tied in 2008.
The record high for August 9 was tied, 97 degrees. This tied the old record of 97 set in 1972.
A new record high was set on August 11, 101 degrees. This beat the old record of 98 degrees set in 1968.
A new record high was set on August 15, 97 degrees. This beat the old record of 96 degrees set in 1948.

Since records on St. Simons Island began on August 12, 1948, this was the oldest surviving record.

A new record high was set on August 27, 99 degrees. This beat the old record of 98 degrees set in 1998. This is also the hottest day so late in the season.

We had a surprise rainshower in predawn hours of August 17 at 5:00 - 5:30 a.m. with 0.11". Not bad for 0% chance of rain! Not a droughtbuster by any means but welcome!

Also, the daily temperature norms have come out for St. Simons Island. A mild surprise was that January lows have been lowered. We have a good stretch of days with an average low of 42. The previous coldest average lows were 43. I await with interest the average temps to the tenth of a degree being released on the Southeastern Regional Climate Center website.

All other seasons of the year were revised upwards. We now have a long stretch of average lows of 76 and our highest average daily lows were previously 75, and the hottest average high of 91 has been expanded considerably.

August 19 marks the first day of being an hour or more shorter than the summer solstice. We are actually 1 hour 1 minute shorter this day. From now through the end of October our days will shorten rapidly. Temperatures will take longer to respond.


Hurricane Irene did not have much impact on St. Simons Island. At home we had 0.30" of rain on August 25-26. Breezy winds but nothing worth recording. Highest official sustained wind was 20 mph on August 25 and highest gust was 33 mph on August 26. Storm surge was 2.3 feet.

July, the summit of summer

July is heat. Not the shimmering heat of the desert, but a cloying, humid heat that soaks the skin. Shirt collars wilt by 9 in the morning. The sun beats down with a palpable presence---almost overhead at the solar noon at the beginning of the month, and not much lower at it's end. Sea breezes still bring relief, although they are weaker than in June, and slowly weaken through the month. Temperatures do not vary much, with average temperatures rising by a tenth of a degree per day during the first week, with the rise slowing asymptotically towards its peak on July 24. Then, more than a month after the solstice, average temperatures peak and afterwards begin a slow, imperceptible decline.

With the seabreeze weaker, storms are more frequent, and they provide relief. Clouds gather and grow dark, the thunder rumbles, and a fat drop of rain plops down in front of your feet. Then another. And another. Suddenly, a current of rain falls down, and the temperature drops below the morning low. Ahhhhhhh! If the storm is early enough, the sun returns bringing back steamy heat. If the storm is late, a calm drippy night lies ahead, with temperatures staying constant or slowly rising as night goes on.

Tropical systems affecting us in July are rare. They do happen on occasion, but not nearly as often as the last week of August of the first half of September. We wait for action.

Date..............actual..............normal................departure.............notes

July 1...........72.3 / 85.8.......74.1 / 89.0...........-2.5
July 2...........73.6 / 86.5.......74.1 / 89.1...........-1.5
July 3...........73.0 / 86.2.......74.2 / 89.2...........-2.1
July 4...........73.8 / 87.4.......74.3 / 89.3...........-1.2
July 5...........74.7 / 91.4.......74.4 / 89.4..........+1.1
July 6...........76.8 / 89.2.......74.5 / 89.5..........+1.0
July 7...........74.5 / 88.5.......74.6 / 89.6...........-0.6
July 8...........76.5 / 81.9.......74.6 / 89.6...........-2.9....................0.02" rain
July 9...........75.6 / 90.0.......74.8 / 89.7..........+0.5....................0.03" rain
July 10.........74.5 / 89.6.......74.8 / 89.8...........-0.2
July 11.........74.3 / 89.1.......74.9 / 89.8...........-0.6
July 12.........75.2 / 90.0.......75.0 / 89.9..........+0.1....................last day of early summer
July 13.........78.1 / 94.5.......75.0 / 90.0..........+3.8....................first day of high summer
July 14.........78.1 / 90.0.......75.1 / 90.0..........+1.5
July 15.........71.2 / 80.4.......75.1 / 90.1...........-6.8....................2.62" rain
July 16.........74.5 / 81.7.......75.1 / 90.1...........-4.5....................0.08" rain
July 17.........75.9 / 85.8.......75.2 / 90.1...........-1.8
July 18.........72.9 / 85.1.......75.2 / 90.1...........-3.6
July 19.........70.7 / 89.2.......75.2 / 90.1...........-2.7
July 20.........73.4 / 94.8.......75.3 / 90.0..........+1.4
July 21.........77.0 / 91.8.......75.3 / 90.0..........+1.7
July 22.........76.8 / 91.9.......75.3 / 90.0..........+1.7
July 23.........75.4 / 89.8.......75.3 / 90.0...........-0.0
July 24.........76.3 / 91.4.......75.4 / 90.0..........+1.1.......highest daily average temperature / last day of high summer
July 25.........75.7 / 93.0.......75.4 / 89.9..........+1.7.......first day of late summer
July 26.........71.6 / 88.5.......75.3 / 89.8...........-2.5....................1.72" rain
July 27.........73.0 / 86.9.......75.3 / 89.7...........-2.0....................0.32" rain
July 28.........71.4 / 87.6.......75.3 / 89.7...........-3.0
July 29.........75.4 / 89.4.......75.3 / 89.6...........-0.0
July 30.........75.9 / 93.9.......75.2 / 89.5..........+2.5
July 31.........77.7 / 91.8.......75.2 / 89.4..........+2.0

Highs

40s.........4
50s.........20
60s.........33
70s.........46
80s.........69
90s.........40

Lows

20s.........4
30s.........15
40s.........27
50s.........49
60s.........36
70s.........78
80s.........3

Freezes.......6

Record daily rainfall July 15, 3.22" officially. Wettest St. Swithun's day on record! Also 6th heaviest daily rainfall recorded in July, and heaviest daily rainfall in July since July 13, 1978.

June Bugs

June bugs me sometimes---the heavy storms of summer almost always are slower to arrive than I'd like, and the tropicas are (usually) quiet. However this year may be an exception---some of the model forecasts for the Caribbean from June 5th on are quite rambunctious! June is a warm month here, although not usually very hot. However, last year we had our highest temperature in 8 years of records at my home station on June 14th! So you never know!

Usually, rainfall increases during June as the atmosphere begins to moisten and the seabreezes that push showers inland weakens (slightly). However, this year may be an exception, as last year was. Our drought is of such long duration, and I see nothing in the patterns that wants to break it.

May was hot and dry, with an official rainfall of 0.58", 2.11" below normal for the month. Our yearly deficit started at 5.00" below normal at the beginning of May, and deepened to 7.11" below normal at the end of May. Our rainfall deficit has been more than 60" since January 1, 2006. Last year was our driest on record, going back to 1948. We had rainfall of 24.27" in 2010, exactly 24" below normal. This year rainfall has been 9.67" so far, which is 1.37" less than last year on this date. Will we have a new driest year on record? It's beginning to be a serious possibility.

May was warmer than normal, although the departure was not as great as in April. May had an average temp of of 75.3 at KSSI, which is 1.6 degrees above normal. The highest temperature was 92 on May 21st and the lowest was 54 on May 5th and 18th. Two records were tied, none were broken.

Date..................actual..............normal................departure.............notes

June 1...............72.5 / 88.5.......70.3 / 84.7...........+3.0
June 2...............73.4 / 85.1.......70.5 / 84.9...........+1.5
June 3...............71.8 / 87.6.......70.7 / 85.0...........+1.8
June 4...............72.7 / 85.8.......70.9 / 85.2...........+1.2
June 5...............71.8 / 89.8.......71.1 / 85.3...........+2.6
June 6...............74.3 / 88.3.......71.3 / 85.5...........+2.9
June 7...............74.1 / 86.2.......71.5 / 85.7...........+1.5
June 8...............71.6 / 84.4.......71.6 / 85.8............-0.7
June 9...............69.6 / 84.2.......71.7 / 85.9............-1.9
June 10.............68.7 / 85.1.......71.9 / 86.0............-2.0
June 11.............71.6 / 85.3.......72.0 / 86.2............-0.6
June 12.............70.7 / 86.5.......72.1 / 86.4............-0.6
June 13.............75.0 / 91.6.......72.3 / 86.5............+3.9
June 14.............72.9 / 96.8.......72.5 / 86.7............+5.2
June 15.............75.6 / 87.8.......72.5 / 86.8............+2.0
June 16.............65.5 / 84.4.......72.6 / 87.0............-4.8.................2.77" rain
June 17.............70.9 / 87.4.......72.8 / 87.1............-0.6.................0.06" rain
June 18.............69.6 / 90.9.......72.8 / 87.1............+0.3
June 19.............76.5 / 91.2.......72.9 / 87.2............+3.8
June 20.............75.6 / 95.2.......73.0 / 87.4............+5.2
June 21.............76.3 / 91.9.......73.0 / 87.5............+3.8
June 22.............72.7 / 92.5.......73.1 / 87.7............+2.2................0.47" rain
June 23.............71.6 / 89.8.......73.2 / 87.8............+0.2................0.29" rain
June 24.............71.8 / 88.0.......73.3 / 87.9............-0.7
June 25.............70.3 / 86.7.......73.4 / 88.0............-2.2.................0.06" rain
June 26.............69.3 / 88.5.......73.5 / 88.2............-1.9
June 27.............71.2 / 90.5.......73.6 / 88.4............-0.1
June 28.............71.2 / 86.5.......73.7 / 88.6............-2.3
June 29.............72.7 / 90.3.......73.9 / 88.7...........+0.2.................1.87" rain
June 30.............72.9 / 85.3.......74.0 / 88.8............-2.3

Highs

40s.........4
50s.........20
60s.........33
70s.........46
80s.........57
90s.........21

Lows

20s.........4
30s.........15
40s.........27
50s.........49
60s.........36
70s.........50

Freezes.......6

Record high tied June 14, 99, also 99 in 2010 and 1963.
June 16 had the coolest morning low since May 19, and was the wettest day since January 21, 2010, which had 2.78"

The events of May

May is a quiet month here, one of our driest as sea breezes suppress and push away convection, and fronts lose their push. May and September are probably the best months to visit here---the weather is warm but not too hot yet (usually).

April was hot and dry,

Temperature 3.9 degrees above normal.
Rain 0.82" below normal.

So the drought continues. More than 60" below normal since Jan 1, 2006

Rainfall YTD is 5.00" below normal as of April 30. Rainfall was 0.54" lower than last year, YTD. Last year was our driest in history.


My model forecast. Still dry as you can see!

Date..................actual..............normal................departure.............notes

May 1...............65.5 / 80.6.......62.2 / 78.5...........+2.7
May 2...............69.1 / 80.6.......62.5 / 78.7...........+4.2
May 3...............68.6 / 81.1.......62.8 / 79.0...........+3.9
May 4...............61.2 / 76.1.......63.1 / 79.2...........-2.5
May 5...............55.9 / 72.3.......63.3 / 79.4...........-7.2
May 6...............63.9 / 74.5.......63.5 / 79.5...........-2.3....................0.05" rain
May 7...............57.0 / 78.4.......63.8 / 79.7...........-4.0
May 8...............61.9 / 86.9.......64.0 / 79.9...........+2.5...................last day of mid spring
May 9...............67.1 / 84.2.......64.3 / 80.0...........+3.5...................first day of late spring
May 10.............70.3 / 83.8.......64.6 / 80.3...........+4.6
May 11.............71.4 / 86.9.......65.0 / 80.6...........+6.3...................greatest av daily temp rise
May 12.............70.7 / 82.0.......65.3 / 80.8...........+3.3
May 13.............71.8 / 88.7.......65.5 / 80.9...........+7.0
May 14.............65.1 / 74.5.......65.8 / 81.1...........-3.6....................0.33" rain....29.68" / 1005.0 mb
May 15.............63.5 / 79.3.......66.1 / 81.3...........-2.3....................29.67" / 1004.7 mb
May 16.............57.4 / 73.0.......66.3 / 81.5...........-8.7....................29.67" / 1004.7 mb
May 17.............56.1 / 75.6........66.6 / 81.7..........-7.8....................29.66" / 1004.5 mb
May 18.............53.4 / 77.9........66.9 / 81.9..........-8.7
May 19.............61.2 / 79.5........67.1 / 82.2..........-4.3
May 20.............68.0 / 82.6........67.4 / 82.5..........+0.3
May 21.............70.3 / 91.4........67.8 / 82.7..........+5.6
May 22.............68.7 / 86.9........68.1 / 82.9..........+2.3
May 23.............71.2 / 86.0........68.3 / 83.1..........+2.9
May 24.............71.2 / 88.0........68.6 / 83.3..........+3.6
May 25.............69.6 / 86.0........68.8 / 83.5..........+1.6
May 26.............71.6 / 83.8........69.1 / 83.8..........+1.2
May 27.............72.9 / 84.2........69.3 / 83.9..........+1.9...................0.02" rain
May 28.............70.3 / 84.6........69.5 / 84.1..........+0.6
May 29.............74.1 / 84.6........69.7 / 84.2..........+2.4
May 30.............72.1 / 84.7........69.9 / 84.4..........+1.3...................last day of late spring
May 31.............70.5 / 84.7........7.01 / 84.6..........+0.2...................first day of early summer

Highs

40s.........4
50s.........20
60s.........33
70s.........46
80s.........44
90s.........4

Lows

20s.........4
30s.........15
40s.........27
50s.........49
60s.........34
70s.........22

Freezes.......6


Record low tied May 18, 54, also in 1984
Record highest low tied May 29, 77, also in 1975

The showers of April

We need showers and storms badly!


April is a transition month. It is usually pleasant, but sometime this month, I will have to use the air-conditioning for the first time. The majority of Aprils do not reach 90, but we already had our first 90 back on March 22!

Despite decent rains the last two days of March, the year has continued very dry. Normal rainfall by April 1st is 11.74" So far this year we have had 7.11" Last year, which turned out to be the driest year on record, had 8.74" by April 1st. So the drought continues, and it is very scary.

Weather stats for March

temp 64.2 +3.8 above normal
rainfall 1.73" -2.20" below normal

Date..................actual..............normal................departure.............notes

April 1...............45.5 / 71.1.......55.1 / 71.7...........-5.1
April 2...............50.4 / 74.5.......55.4 / 71.9...........-1.2
April 3...............49.8 / 72.7.......55.5 / 72.1...........-2.5
April 4...............60.1 / 78.6.......55.7 / 72.3...........+5.3
April 5...............49.5 / 70.7.......55.9 / 72.5...........-4.1.....................0.54" rain
April 6...............45.1 / 68.4.......56.2 / 72.7...........-7.7
April 7...............55.9 / 73.9.......56.5 / 73.1...........+0.1
April 8...............60.8 / 81.0.......56.7 / 73.3...........+5.9
April 9...............66.7 / 88.7.......56.9 / 73.6..........+12.4...................first use of air conditioning
April 10.............66.4 / 88.7.......57.2 / 73.8..........+12.0
April 11.............64.2 / 82.6.......57.4 / 74.1...........+7.6
April 12.............59.4 / 74.7.......57.5 / 74.3...........+1.1....................0.07" rain
April 13.............54.1 / 78.4.......57.6 / 74.5...........+0.2
April 14.............58.5 / 77.4.......57.7 / 74.7...........+1.7
April 15.............64.9 / 76.8.......57.9 / 74.9...........+4.4
April 16.............67.5 / 85.6.......58.1 / 75.1...........+9.9
April 17.............53.1 / 69.3.......58.4 / 75.3...........-5.6
April 18.............53.1 / 74.3.......58.6 / 75.5...........-3.3
April 19.............64.9 / 80.4.......58.9 / 75.6...........+5.4
April 20.............66.4 / 83.1.......59.1 / 75.9...........+7.2
April 21.............66.7 / 86.4.......59.4 / 76.2...........+8.7....................0.16" rain
April 22.............67.5 / 80.1.......59.7 / 76.4...........+5.7....................last day of early spring
April 23.............67.6 / 81.3.......60.0 / 76.6...........+6.1....................first day of mid spring
April 24.............69.3 / 81.9.......60.3 / 76.9...........+7.0
April 25.............68.0 / 81.0.......60.7 / 77.1...........+5.6
April 26.............71.2 / 81.9.......61.0 / 77.4...........+7.3....................0.11" rain
April 27.............73.0 / 82.9.......61.2 / 77.6...........+8.5
April 28.............69.6 / 82.4.......61.4 / 77.8...........+6.4....................0.17" rain
April 29.............56.1 / 77.9.......61.7 / 78.1...........-2.9.....................0.32" rain
April 30.............58.1 / 79.3.......61.9 / 78.3...........-1.2

I think at the end of the year 80s will win for highs, and 70s for lows. We will see!

Record high April 9, 89. Old record 88, in 1999
Record high April 10, 90. Old record 85, 1n 1963
Record warmest low tied April 25, 72. Old record 72 in 2002.
Record warmest low broken April 26, 74. Old record 70 in 1957. This is also the second warmest daily low for the month of April.
Record warmest low broken April 27, 75. Old record 72 in 1991. This ties the warmest daily record low for the month of April, set on April 29, 1991.

Highs

40s.........4
50s.........20
60s.........33
70s.........38
80s.........23
90s.........2

Lows

20s.........4
30s.........15
40s.........27
50s.........44
60s.........25
70s.........5

Freezes.......6

The winds of March

Howled today, but not like a lion---more like the last breath of our old friend winter, soon to depart. Wind gusts rose into the 30s for the first of March, and it is deliciously cool! We'll see how the rest of the month goes!

On a more ominous note, the drought seems to be continuing again. We had decent rains up to February 10th, but almost none since. Dry, dry dry! It was like this last year too, with decent winter rains and then horribly dry---our driest year on record by more than 2" (record goes back to 1948). In fact, we are now drier than we were last year at this time. Rainfall to date is 5.40". Last year was 6.29" this date. Normal is 7.49" to date. The upcoming pattern looks 'droughty' to me. I hope it doesn't last. Our last year of above normal rainfall was 2005--since then we have been more than 55" below normal. It's really quite scary.

Date...................actual..............normal................departure...................notes

March 1.............52.7 / 69.6.......48.6 / 66.1...........+3.8..........................0.02" rain
March 2.............50.0 / 63.5.......48.9 / 66.2............-0.8
March 3.............52.3 / 66.0.......49.1 / 66.4...........+1.4..........................0.01" rain
March 4.............56.3 / 68.2.......49.2 / 66.6...........+4.3..........................0.01" rain
March 5.............57.0 / 69.8.......49.4 / 66.8...........+5.3
March 6.............50.2 / 73.6.......49.5 / 67.0...........+3.6..........................0.01" rain
March 7.............40.3 / 57.0.......49.6 / 67.2...........-9.7
March 8.............52.9 / 66.0.......49.8 / 67.3...........+0.9
March 9.............56.3 / 69.6.......49.9 / 67.4...........+4.3..........................0.62" rain......last day of mid winter.
March 10...........46.2 / 63.9.......50.1 / 67.6...........-3.8...........................0.05" rain......first day of late winter
March 11...........39.9 / 61.0.......50.4 / 67.8...........-8.6
March 12...........38.7 / 66.6.......50.7 / 67.9...........-6.6
March 13...........46.8 / 72.0.......50.9 / 68.1...........-0.1
March 14...........50.4 / 72.5.......51.1 / 68.3...........+1.7
March 15...........50.2 / 71.6.......51.5 / 68.5...........+0.9
March 16...........56.8 / 78.1.......51.8 / 68.8...........+7.1
March 17...........50.2 / 70.5.......52.1 / 69.0...........-0.2
March 18...........54.0 / 81.3.......52.3 / 69.1...........+6.9
March 19...........56.7 / 83.5.......52.6 / 69.3...........+9.1
March 20...........61.3 / 73.9.......52.7 / 69.5...........+6.5
March 21...........56.7 / 74.1.......52.9 / 69.7...........+4.1
March 22...........58.5 / 87.1.......53.0 / 69.8..........+11.4...last day of late winter....new record high 90
March 23...........60.1 / 85.5.......53.2 / 70.0..........+11.2...first day of early spring...new record high 88
March 24...........63.9 / 85.8.......53.3 / 70.2..........+13.1...new record high 88
March 25...........49.6 / 72.0.......53.6 / 70.4............-1.2.....36.2°F drop from afternoon high 3/24 to morning low 3/25
March 26...........52.9 / 73.9.......53.9 / 70.6...........+1.1
March 27...........59.7 / 86.5.......54.1 / 70.8.........+10.6.........................0.04" rain
March 28...........52.3 / 63.3.......54.2 / 70.9...........-4.7..........................0.15" rain
March 29...........50.2 / 60.4.......54.4 / 71.1...........-7.4..........................0.04" rain
March 30...........60.1 / 68.9.......54.6 / 71.2..........+1.6..........................0.78" rain....29.63" (1003.2 mb)
March 31...........56.7 / 67.3.......54.9 / 71.4...........-1.6..........................0.78" rain....29.56" (1000.8 mb)

The 90 on March 22 tied the record for March, and is only the second time it has hit 90 here in March. The

Record high March 22 90, old record 85 in 1997. The other 90 was on March 12, 1967.
Record high March 23 88, old record 87 in 1995
Record high March 24 88, old record 87 in 1975
Record high March 27 88, old record 78 in 1949


Temperature drops of 35°F or more from previous afternoon high to morning low are very rare--couple times a year or sometimes none at all. Since I started my weather diary and got my equipment in 2003, I have never recorded a 40°F drop. All have occurred from November through April. The biggest temperature fall was 39.7°F on Dec 21-22, 2008.

We have never had temperatures rise 32°F or more from a morning low. The biggest temperature rise from a morning low was 31.7°F on April 17, 2007.

I'd like to see a 40 degree swing someday.

March 27 record high broken by 10 degrees! Our records were officially started on August 12, 1948, so we don't have as long a record as major cities and we do break records by wide margins sometimes. But it's been a while since I saw a record taken out by 10 degrees here.


I think at the end of the year 80s will win for highs, and 70s for lows. We will see!

Highs

40s.........4
50s.........20
60s.........31
70s.........26
80s.........8
90s.........1

Lows

20s.........4
30s.........15
40s.........24
50s.........35
60s.........12

Freezes.......6