Category Archives: Climate

DFW SETS UNPRECEDENTED RECORD OF BEING LATEST TO EVER FALL BELOW 50°F

Officially at DFW Airport, the mercury has not fallen below 50°F. There are currently no indications that it will do so anytime soon. The old record was actually set last year on November 8, 2015 as the latest date to fall below 50°F. Below are the top 5 latest dates that DFW has not fallen below 50°F:

  1. 2016 ?
  2. November 8, 2015
  3. November 3, 2004 and 1950
  4. October 31, 2014
  5. October 30, 1931

Whenever we do actually fall below 50°F this season will be some unprecedented record for the area. Currently, there are no indications we will fall below 40°F. That record may also be in jeopardy if we don’t do so by the end of the month.

HOTTEST OCTOBER AND HOTTEST YEAR ON RECORD FOR DFW?

So far this October, the mercury at DFW Airport has officially not fallen below 50°F. Given the weather pattern out through the end of the month, it is pretty much a lock that we will not fall below 50°F before October is over. There has only been four other years in weather recorded history that the temperature failed to fall below 50°F, 1947 (53°F lowest), 1950 (51°F lowest), 2004 (51°F lowest), and 2015 (51°F lowest). In addition, October 2016 is on track to be the warmest October ever recorded with a mean running temperature of 74°F (through October 28th). The entire year of 2016 is currently on track to be the hottest year in DFW weather recorded history with a mean temperature of 71.7°F (through October 28th).

DFW OFFICIALLY HITS 100°F FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS SUMMER

On July 22, 2016, DFW Airport records its first 100°F temperature of the 2016 summer season. The average first day for triple digit heat is usually around July 1st. The above normal precipitation, both year-to-date and since last year, has kept soils moist and greenery unusually lush well into July. In conjunction with strong summer ridging, which has largely been centered in the desert southwest part of the CONUS this summer, has prevented temperatures from being too terribly hot by Texas standards. We may again flirt with the century mark today, but temperatures will be coming down as the ridge retrogrades back west from troughiness diving into the northern part of the country. This will allow some rain chances to creep back into our forecast next week and temperatures should stay below the century mark for much of next week.

IT’S JULY 4TH AND DFW HAS NOT REACHED 100°F YET

It’s July 4th with 1/3rd of the summer behind us, and it has not officially hit the century mark at DFW Airport this season. What gives? Well, the average date for the first triple digit reading at DFW Airport is actually only July 1st. There are several other factors that have kept us below the century mark so far.  For one, we have seen above normal precipitation to date. This collects in the ground and keeps the grounds from drying out like it normally would this time of year. The increased precipitation has also kept things greener than normal. The evapotranspiration effects (the process by which water is evaporated back into the atmosphere from the soil and plants) actually helps to slow the temperature rise while also providing more humidity which makes it feel hotter than it actually is outside. Another reason the temperatures have largely remained below 100°F is that the typical summertime ridging has largely been centered out to our west across the desert southwest. It has been very hot in this region so far this summer. The influences of this ridge has so far been pretty minimal compared to other summers. North Texas has actually been caught between the ridging out west and troughing over the east, and this has provided for more northerly/northwesterly flow aloft patterns than is typical during summer. This has actually allowed more opportunities for rain as disturbances move into our area around the ridge. So, given that DFW Airport picked up another nearly 2 inches of rainfall overnight, the ridge not fully building in strong keeping heights lower and H85 temps not as warm, and a breezy pattern at the surface keeping the boundary layer well mixed, the chances of seeing 100°F at DFW Airport over the next few days seems pretty unlikely. Highs will continue to top out around 96°F to 98°F with heat index values between 103°F and 105°F.

DFW 2015 YEAR IN REVIEW

2015 was the 19th hottest year on record for DFW with an average temperature of 67.2°F. December 2015 was the second hottest on record behind 1933 for the area with an average mean temperature of 53.6°F. It was the wettest year in all of DFW weather recorded history with an incredible 62.61 inches of rainfall. May 2015 was the wettest May ever recorded for the area with a whopping 16.96 inches of rainfall. Thanksgiving 2015 was the second wettest Thanksgiving of record with 2.71 inches of rainfall. The highest temperature for the year was 106°F on August 9th and 10th. The lowest temperature for the year was 16°F on January 8th.

DFW SETS ALL TIME HOTTEST LOW TEMPERATURE FOR DECEMBER

Saturday, December 12, 2015, DFW Airport recorded its hottest all time low temperature for the month of December. The low was 70°F. The previous record was 69°F set on December 16, 1924. This marks the first time, since weather records have been kept, that the mercury failed to drop below 70°F  in a 24-hour period during the month of December.

NOVEMBER 2015 THE WETTEST NOVEMBER IN DFW HISTORY

Please check out the informative article Meteorologist Chris Robbins wrote over at iWeatherNet on the incredible rains we have received throughout 2015, including the fact that November came in as the wettest November in DFW history. Lots of great climatological data and analysis presented here:

http://www.iweathernet.com/dallas-fort-worth/dfw-2015-is-the-wettest-year-on-record-for-dallas-fort-worth

OCTOBER 2015 THE 2ND WETTEST OCTOBER ON RECORD

October 2015 has come in as the second wettest October on record. The top five wettest Octobers are:

  1. 1981 – 14.18 inches
  2. 2015 – 9.82 inches
  3. 1919 – 9.44 inches
  4. 1991 – 9.32 inches
  5. 1959 – 9.22 inches

This brings the total for the year 2015 to 48.93 inches of precipitation, making it, so far, the sixth wettest year in DFW weather records.

October 2015 came in with a mean average temperature of 71.2°F, making it the 12th hottest October on record. This puts the year 2015 so far in the running, with an annual average mean temperature of 69.3°F, as being the hottest year on record for DFW.

SIGNS THE SEASONS ARE A CHANGING

A significant upper-air pattern change is going to take place this week across the CONUS that will have direct impacts on the sensible weather for North Texas. A series of shortwaves will carve out a substantial trough in the center of the CONUS this week, helping to break down the upper-ridge that is currently sitting on top of Texas over the holiday weekend. This ridge will ensure temperatures stay in the upper 90s to near 100°F through the middle of next week. The deepening trough and the dropping of the westerlies southward will help drive a significant cold front south into Texas by the last part of the week. This will increase rain chances for our area, bring in much cooler temperatures, and eventually drive drier continental air into the region. Behind the front, temperatures should plummet into the 80s for highs (possibly cooler depending on cloud cover and post-frontal precipitation) and into the low to mid 60s for overnight lows, especially after the effects of the drier continental air advects into the region. This is a sure sign the seasons are a changing!