Saturday, July 23, 2011

Record Mid Atlantic Heat Continues;
Update: Atlantic City Has Second Hottest All-Time Temperature

See Record Heat for the latest updates.

Record-setting triple digit temperatures continued for a second day today (July 23) in the Mid Atlantic area. The high of 102° at Washington National broke the old record of 101° in 1991. There are now over 120 years of difference between the record low temperature for the date (56° in 1890) and the high temperature. Barring some evening thunderstorms, the morning low of 84°, if it holds through midnight, will tie the all-time warmest low temperature at Washington.

The high of 99° at Washington Dulles tied the record set in 1991.

The 102° at Baltimore BWI tied the July 23 record of 102°, also set in 1991. The Baltimore Inner Harbor high was 103°.

The high of 103° at Salisbury, Maryland broke the 1952 record by 3°.

Norfolk tied its 103° record, also from 1952.

In New Jersey, the high of 105° at Atlantic City blasted away the 1991 record of 100° by 5°.

Trenton also destroyed its 1991 record by a comparable amount with a new record of 104° vs. the old one of 99°.

The 100° at Reading, Pennsylvania broke the old record of 99° in 1955.

Another 1991 record was eclipsed at Philadelphia, where the 101° surpassed the previous 99°.

In Delaware, the 1991 record of 99° at Wilmington was replaced with a new record of 100°.

Georgetown DE had a high of 104°, which wiped out the 1952 record of 101°.

All 8 of the major climate reporting stations in the Philadelphia region, with the exception of Mt. Pocono and Allentown, set daily records.

Update:
According to National Weather Service records, the 105° at Atlantic City tied the second hottest temperature ever observed in records which date back to 1874. The previous second place value occurred yesterday, so 3 of the top 10 hottest temperatures at Atlantic City have now been recorded this year. The top 10 hottest temperatures through yesterday were:
Rank  Value  Date
1 106.0 6/28/1969
2 105.0 7/22/2011
3 104.0 7/3/1966, 8/7/1918
5 103.0 8/9/2001
6 102.0 6/9/2011, 7/6/2010, 7/4/1966, 7/21/1930
10 101.0 8/8/2007

Friday, July 22, 2011

All-Time Record High Temperature at Hartford

From the National Weather Service:
AT 406 PM THE TEMPERATURE REACHED 103 DEGREES AT BRADLEY   
INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. THIS SETS A NEW RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR
TODAYS DATE FOR HARTFORD CT. THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 101 DEGREES IN
1926.

THE TEMPERATURE OF 103 DEGREES ALSO SETS AN ALL TIME RECORD HIGH
TEMPERATURE FOR HARTFORD. THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 102 DEGREES WAS SET
ON MULTIPLE DATES OF JULY 6 2010...AUGUST 9 OF 2001 AND JULY 3 OF
1996.

Record Heat Extends to Canada: All-Time Highest Minimum at Toronto

According to The Globe and Mail ("Blistering heat bakes Ontario with record temperatures"), Toronto's minimum temperature of 26.6°C (80°F) on Thursday (July 21) set a record for all-time highest minimum. The high temperature of 37.5°C was a new daily record at Toronto. Daily records were set elsewhere in Ontario, including temperatures of 36.9°C in Windsor, 36.4°C in London and 36°C in Hamilton.

(h/t to AtmosNews)

Washington Dulles Sets All-Time High Temperature Record;
Mid Atlantic Daily Records Smashed by Wide Margin

The high temperature of 105° at 3:52 pm today at Washington Dulles is a new all-time record. It beats the old record for July 22 of 98° in 1998 by 7°. The previous July monthly record and all-time record was 104° on July 16, 1988. The August monthly record is also 104°, set on August 20, 1983. Dulles climate records began in 1962.

The Washington National high of 102° was 1° below the record of 103° in 1926.

The high of 106° at Baltimore BWI broke the daily record of 101° from 1957 by 5°. This is the second highest temperature in history at Baltimore. The all-time high was 107° on July 10, 1936, but the highest record for any other day was 105°. Baltimore climate records began in 1870.

New York Hottest Since 1977

3 PM Update: Central Park's temperature is currently down to 102°.

Original post:
The high temperature of 104° so far today (as of 2 pm) at Central Park is the highest for any day since July 21st, 1977, according to National Weather Service records. This also breaks the record for the date of 101° set in 1957.

Other century-plus readings so far today in the New York region:
POUGHKEEPSIE   100
ISLIP 100
LAGUARDIA APRT 100
KENNEDY INTL 102
TETERBORO 102
ATLANTIC CITY 102

Fort Smith Sets Record 100°+ Streak

See Record Heat for the latest updates.

With a temperature of 102° by 1 pm CDT today, Fort Smith, Arkansas set a new record for consecutive 100°+ days with 18, exceeding the previous record of 17 ending on 7/26/1934. The temperature at Fort Smith has been 100° or higher every day this month except for the 4th, when the high was 97°. The total of 21 100°+ days so far this month is the 3rd highest for July, behind 22 in 1954 and 25 in 1934. Climate records at Fort Smith began in 1882.

Newark Near Breaks Extends All-Time Temperature Record

3 PM Update: Newark's all-time record is up another notch at an incredible 108° (42.2°C).

2:15 PM Update: The 2 pm report from Newark shows a high so far today of 107°, exceeding the old record, which had been tied 4 times, by 2°. For the geeks, here is the historic report, showing a high temperature in the past 6 hours of 41.7°C.:

KEWR 221751Z 27015G19KT 9SM FEW060 41/20 A2982 RMK AO2 SLP099 HAZE ALOFT T04110200 10417 20322 58001

2 PM Update: The Newark all-time high temperature record has been broken with a reading of 106° at 2 pm.

Original post:
With the peak afternoon heating still to go, Newark, New Jersey has reached 104° as of 1 pm. This is just 1° below the all-time high temperature record at Newark of 105°. Since daily records began in 1929, the record temperature has been observed 4 times in July and once each in August and September:
July  3 1966
July 4 1949
July 8 1993
July 10 1993
Aug. 9 2001
Sept. 2 1953

100+ Heat Indices in Northern New England

Yesterday's high temperatures of 97° at both Concord, New Hampshire and Portland, Maine both fell short of records set in 1977, but heat indices have already reached 100 or more in northern New England by noon today. Here are some reports from Maine and New Hampshire:
Location           Temperature Dewpoint Relative Heat   
Humidity Index
Portland 95 69 42 100
Sanford 97 72 44 105
Wiscasset 95 72 47 103
Rockland 93 73 52 102
Portsmouth 97 71 43 105
Nashua 98 69 38 104
Manchester 96 68 39 101
To the south, both Boston and New York are at 98° with heat indices of 107 and 108, respectively. Central Park in New York has a temperature of 100° and dewpoint of 76° for a heat index of 114.

Idiot America Report: Bashing "Haboobs"; Next Up, Banning Algebra

The NY Times reports today that some residents of Arizona are offended at the use of the term "haboob" to refer to dust storms because of its Middle Eastern origin. Presumably, they will now be mounting a campaign to ban the teaching of algebra.
"I am insulted that local TV news crews are now calling this kind of storm a haboob," Don Yonts, a resident of Gilbert, Ariz., wrote to The Arizona Republic after a particularly fierce, mile-high dust storm swept through the state on July 5. "How do they think our soldiers feel coming back to Arizona and hearing some Middle Eastern term?"

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Dangerous 105+ Heat Indices Reach East Coast;
Update: Syracuse Sets July Record




Images (click to enlarge): U.S. heat index at 1 pm EDT, July 21, 2011, from Unisys; Heat index calculated from temperature and relative humidity (graph by CapitalClimate, table from National Weather Service)

6 PM Update: Added daily high temperatures to the table below. The Raleigh temperature tied the record set in 1952. Syracuse broke the record of 95° set in 1930 and 1933 by 6°.

A temperature of 98° and dewpoint of 76° (50% relative humidity) at Washington National at 5 pm produced a heat index of 114.

3 PM Update: The 97°/51% at Washington National raises the heat index to 112.

2:45 PM Update: This is the first time the temperature has ever reached 100° at Syracuse in July since records began at the current location in 1950. The temperature was 100° on August 9, 2001 and 101° on August 14, 2002.

Original Post
By 1 pm today, near-record heat coupled with high humidity to produce 100+ heat index values along most of the Southeast and Mid Atlantic coasts. In portions of the Carolinas and Virginia and northward into New York, heat indices were in the dangerous 105-110 range. Oppressive dewpoints of 70° or higher stretched from the Gulf Coast northward across the eastern Great Lakes into southern Canada and along nearly the entire East Coast. Here are some representative values of temperature, dewpoint, relative humidity, and heat index as of 2 pm EDT:
Location           Temperature Dewpoint Relative Heat   Daily
Humidity Index High
Washington Natl. 95 77 56 109 99
Washington Dulles 97 72 45 105 100
Baltimore BWI 98 74 46 109 100
Baltimore Downtown 101 75 44 114 103
Richmond 96 77 55 111 99
Raleigh 100 70 38 107 102
Philadelphia 96 74 49 107 98
Central Park NY 96 76 52 109 97
Albany NY 96 70 43 102 99
Poughkeepsie NY 96 73 48 105 98
Syracuse NY 100 73 42 110 101
Boston 97 70 42 103 97
Hartford 97 70 42 103 98

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Minneapolis Humidity Reaches (Unofficial) Record;
Confirmation Confounded by Political Kerfluffle

Image (click to enlarge): Dewpoint temperature at 3 pm CDT, July 19,2011, from Unisys

The National Weather Service reported on Tuesday (July 19) that the Minneapolis dewpoint reached an unofficial record of 82°, resulting in near-record heat index values. The Minnesota State Climatology Office, which could confirm the record, remains closed as a result of a state budget political showdown, now in its third week.
THE DEW POINT TEMPERATURE AT THE MINNEAPOLIS ST PAUL INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT WAS 82 DEGREES ON THE 3 PM AND 4 PM OBSERVATION. THIS IS THE
HIGHEST DEW POINT TEMPERATURE REPORTED ON AN HOURLY OBSERVATION AT
THE MINNEAPOLIS ST PAUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT SINCE HOURLY DEW POINT
RECORDS BEGAN IN 1945.

THE PREVIOUS HOURLY DEW POINT RECORD WAS 81 DEGREES...WHICH WAS SET
ON JULY 30TH 1999. A DEW POINT OF 81 DEGREES WAS ALSO REPORTED AT
THE AIRPORT ON SUNDAY...MONDAY...AND EARLIER TODAY /JULY 17-19/.

THE MINNESOTA STATE CLIMATOLOGY OFFICE IS THE OFFICIAL SOURCE OF
DEW POINT RECORDS ACROSS THE STATE. THIS NEW RECORD WILL BE
CONSIDERED UNOFFICIAL UNTIL IT IS CONFIRMED BY THE STAFF AT THE
STATE CLIMATE OFFICE.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Summer of Simmer 2011: Oklahoma, Arkansas Locations Near or Above Seasonal Heat Records

Image (click to enlarge): Temperature departure from 1981-2010 average (°C), June 1-July 17, 2011, from NOAA/ESRL

See Record Heat for the latest updates.

5 PM CDT Update: The preliminary daily climatological report from Fort Smith indicates a high temperature of 102°, bringing the number of consecutive 100° days to 15.

Tulsa has also reached at least 101° as of the past hour. The monthly total of 100° days at Tulsa is now 15. This is tied with 1917 and 1966 for the 8th highest in July.

Original post:
As the second half of meteorological summer (June-August) begins, eastern Oklahoma and northwestern Arkansas (including Tulsa and Fort Smith) are on track to set records for hottest seasonal temperatures. The National Weather Service reports today:
THUS FAR FOR THE SUMMER SEASON...FROM JUNE 1 THROUGH JULY
18...SEVERAL LOCATIONS ACROSS EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST
ARKANSAS HAVE SET OR APPROACHED ALL TIME HIGH TEMPERATURE
RECORDS...AND ARE ALSO ON PACE FOR ONE OF THE HOTTEST SUMMERS.

FORT SMITH ARKANSAS HAS THE HIGHEST AVERAGE TEMPERATURE
OF 87.1 DEGREES. THE SECOND WARMEST AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE
SAME PERIOD IS 85.6 DEGREES FROM 1934.

TULSA OKLAHOMA IS CURRENTLY RANKED THE SECOND WARMEST...WITH AN
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 86.5 DEGREES...WITH 1980 BEING THE
WARMEST...WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 86.7 DEGREES.

THE MCALESTER AIRPORT ALSO HAS THE WARMEST AVERAGE TEMPERATURE SO
FAR THIS SUMMER...WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 85.9 DEGREES. THE
SECOND WARMEST YEAR FOR THE SAME TIME PERIOD IS 1954...WITH AN
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 84.1 DEGREES.

THE BARTLESVILLE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE SO FAR THIS SUMMER...IS 82.7
DEGREES...WHICH RANKS IT IN 5TH PLACE...BEHIND 1934 WHICH HAD AN
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 85.3 FOR THE SAME PERIOD.

LASTLY...FAYETTEVILLE HAS AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE SO FAR THIS
SUMMER OF 80.4 DEGREES...WHICH TIES 1980 FOR THE WARMEST AVERAGE
SUMMER TEMPERATURE THROUGH JULY 18TH. THE SECOND WARMEST YEAR FOR
THE SAME PERIOD WAS 1954...WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 79.9 DEGREES.

ON A SIDE NOTE...THROUGH JULY 18...FORT SMITH HAS HAD 14
CONSECUTIVE DAYS AT OR ABOVE 100 DEGREES. THE RECORD IS 17
CONSECUTIVE DAYS...FROM JULY OF 1934.

Seasonal Outlook

Latest seasonal forecast: Click here.


Latest 3-month temperature outlook from Climate Prediction Center/NWS/NOAA.