Mid Atlantic Record Low Daily Maximum Temperatures Set or Tied;Update: Washington Ties Record for 2nd Consecutive Day

Image (click to enlarge): U.S. daily high temperatures for October 2, 2011, from Unisys

October 3, Midnight Update: The National Weather Service reported today that Salisbury, Maryland also set a new record low daily maximum temperature for October 2 (Sunday). The high of 55° beat the old record of 56° in 1940. Salisbury climate records date back to 1900.

October 3, 5:30 PM Update: A late surge of sunshine could change the final result, but today's high temperature so far of 53° at Washington National is tied with the record daily low maximum from 1974. The 51° at Dulles has already missed the record of 49°, also from 1974. Baltimore has also missed the record with 56°, vs. the record of 52°, again from the same year.

October 3, 12 PM Update: The preliminary daily high temperatures are confirmed.

Original post:
Unless temperatures inexplicably jump several degrees in the next hour or so, daily record low maximum temperatures for October 2 will be set or tied at all 3 major reporting locations in the Washington/Baltimore area. The high of 58° at Richmond, however, is 4° above the daily record low maximum. The high of 56° at Philadelphia has also missed its record, which is 53° in 1899. Today's preliminary highs and the previous records for the date in parentheses from National Weather Service climate data:

Washington National 52 @ 1253 PM  (52, 1939) 
Washington Dulles   50 @ 1226 PM  (54, 1974)
Baltimore BWI       51 @ 1120 AM  (53, 1939) 

UK Sets National Daily Heat Record for 3rd 4th Consecutive Day;October Monthly Record in Jeopardy Also Broken

October 2 Update: The Met Office reports that today's high temperature of "29.3C at Cambridge (at 14:29 bst) and Santon Downham (at 14:43 bst)" is a new national record for October 2, exceeding the 28.1C in 1908 (unspecified location).
[Update: Location of previous record was Whitby, North Yorkshire.]

October 1, 3 PM BST Update: The October record has been exceeded by an additional 0.4°C:

The maximum daily temperature record for the UK as a whole for October has been broken with 29.9C recorded at Gravesend at 14:42 BST. The previous record value [29.4°C] was reported at March in Cambridgeshire on 1st October 1985. The Wales maximum temperature value for October has also been exceeded with Hawarden reporting 28.2C at 14:12 BST. The previous was 26.4C at Ruthin in Denbighshire (1st October 1985).

The BBC reports:
Record UK temperature for October set at 29.9C
From the Guardian:
Indian summer brings out the crowds

October 1, 2 PM BST Update: The Met Office reports that the UK October monthly high temperature record has been broken:

The maximum daily temperature record for the UK as a whole for October has been broken with 29.5C recorded at Gravesend at 13:27 BST. The previous record value was reported at March in Cambridgeshire on 1st October 1985. The Wales maximum temperature value for October has also been exceeded with Trawscoed reporting 26.6C at 12:50 BST. The previous was 26.4C at Ruthin in Denbighshire Temperature values are still rising, and this message will be updated later this afternoon.

Original post:
The Beeb reports that UK national daily heat records were set for both September 29 and 30, beating previous records, each over a century old, by as much as 2 degrees:

On Friday, Cambridge set a new record temperature for the hottest ever 30 September with 29.2C (84.5F), beating the 27.8C (82F) set in Maidenhead, Berkshire in 1908.

Kew Gardens in west London set another record on Thursday with 28.8C (83.8F) - the highest ever 29 September temperature, beating the mark of 27.8C (82F) set in York in 1895.

With unseasonably hot temperatures continuing into the weekend, the monthly record for October is also in jeopardy of breaking:

The 29.4C (84.9F) record was set at March, Cambridgeshire on 1 October 1985

BBC weather forecaster Darren Bett said there was a "good chance" the October record would be broken on Saturday.

More from the Guardian:
Weather records tumble as Britons head for the beach

Image (click to enlarge): UK forecast temperatures for 4 pm, Saturday, October 1, from Met Office

Minnesota Temperature Update: Record High at International Falls; Century-Plus Records Fall in Dakotas

Midnight Update: The updated preliminary climate report shows a high temperature of 82°.

Other high temperature records in North and South Dakota were (old record in parentheses):

Grand Forks ND    88°  (85°, 1995)
Fargo ND          90°  (89°, 1905) 
Huron SD          93°  (92°, 1897)
Mitchell SD       93°  (tie, 1897)

The Huron high temperature represented a 50° swing from the morning low of 43°.

Original post:
After hitting a record September low 2 weeks ago, northern Minnesota temperatures have rebounded to summer levels. Today's high of 81° at International Falls broke the record of 80° set in 1922. With 3 days remaining in the month, the September average through yesterday remains at 0.3° above the 1981-2010 normal.

Northern Minnesota's Coldest Temperature So Early in Season

Image (click to enlarge): Median date of first freezing temperature, from Midwestern Regional Climate Center, via National Weather Service

The low temperature of 19° this morning at International Falls, Minnesota was the coldest ever reported so early in the season and an all-time record low for September. The National Weather Service reports:

The low temperature at 7:06 am this morning at International Falls was 19 degrees. This breaks the record low for a September 15th, 24 degrees, set in 1964. This is the coldest temperature reported for so early in the season. This also marks the first time in station history that a temperature in the teens has been recorded in the month of September.

The low temperature at Embarrass also reached 19°. The low of 36° at Minneapolis tied the record for the date from 1964 and 2007. The 29° at Eau Claire broke the record of 30° from 2007. Other record lows included:

Rochester MN          31 
Prairie Du Chein WI   27
Viroqua WI            31  

The record lows follow a near-record streak of 80° days at Duluth ending Monday:

Today, September 12th, marks the 5th consecutive day of an 80 degree temperature at Duluth. Only two other stretches have been as long or longer than this in the month of September. Six consecutive days above 80 is the record set in 1906, September 5-10. The other 5 day string was in 1948 from September 1-5.

Dallas Breaks Annual 100° Day Record; Houston and Austin Extend Records

Image (click to enlarge): Number of 100° temperature days at Houston and elsewhere in southeastern Texas

5 PM CDT Update: The preliminary high temperature at Dallas was 107°, smashing the old daily record by 7°.

Also breaking a record by a wide margin was Houston, where the 102° high crushed the 99-year-old record of 98° from 1912. This year has now had both the earliest (June 5) and latest 102° temperatures in a calendar year at Houston. This is the 45th day of 100° temperatures at Houston, breaking the old record of 32 by almost 2 weeks.

The Austin high of 105° broke another long-standing record, exceeding the 100° in 1918. It was the 7th 100° day at Austin this month and the 84th this year, extending the record more than 2 weeks beyond the old record of 69. The record was broken on August 24.

Original post:
The Dallas temperature reached 101° at 1 pm CDT today, breaking the record for yearly number of days with 100° temperatures. The old record was 69 in 1980. This also breaks the old record high temperature for the date of 100° set in 1965. If the forecast high of 106° is reached, it will break the record by 6°.

This is also the 86th day of 100° or higher at Waco, exceeding the 1980 record of 63 days by over 3 weeks.

Lee's Leftovers Loosen Soggy Stranglehold on Mid Atlantic; Record Rain Relinquishes Reign

Image (click to enlarge): Mid Atlantic precipitation for 7 days ending 8 am EDT, Sept. 9, 2011, from National Weather Service

After drenching the Mid Atlantic region for most of the week, the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee have finally let up their relentlessly rainy reign. Although some flash flood warnings and watches as well as river flood warnings remain in effect, the heaviest rainfall has ended, leaving behind some record-breaking accumulations. Double-digit storm totals have been recorded across at least 10 states from Louisiana to New York. The highest amount appears to be 20.96" at a cooperative station near Colonial Beach, VA, but a plume of very heavy rainfall extended northward through the Susquehanna River watershed of Pennsylvania and New York.

In the immediate Washington/Baltimore area, official storm total rainfall reports include:

Washington National  6.47 
Washington Dulles    6.44
Ft. Belvoir         13.48 
Baltimore BWI        8.11
Baltimore Downtown   6.90 
Andrews AFB          9.06 
Patuxent River       2.13  

Selected reports of 10" or more as of 2 pm today from the National Weather Service include:

...ALABAMA...
FYFFE 6.3 NNE                       12.94                      
MOBILE 10.2 WSW                     12.93                      
ALBERTVILLE 4.8 WNW                 12.44                      
TILLMANS CORNER 4.3 WNW             11.74                      
GRAND BAY 0.6 NW                    11.32                      
ORANGE BEACH 3.0 ENE                10.50                      
FOLEY 2.0 SSW                       10.39       

  ...FLORIDA...
MILTON 1.4 NNE                      10.03       

...GEORGIA...
LA FAYETTE 2.9 NE                   11.01                      
RINGGOLD 5 W                        10.21 

...LOUISIANA...
HOLDEN                              15.43                      
N.O. CAROLLTON                      14.32                      
MAUREPAS                            13.63                      
PONCHATOULA 4 SE                    13.22                      
CONVENT 2 S                         13.04                      
WESTWEGO 1.8 NE                     13.03                      
RESERVE 0.5 SSE                     12.89                      
GRAY 0.5 ENE                        12.15                      
NEW ORLEANS/MOISANT                 11.00     

...MARYLAND...
WALDORF 3.6 SSE                     13.63                      
CROFTON 1.5 NNE                     11.85                      
ELLICOTT CITY 1.7 N                 11.36                      
CLARKSBURG                          10.60         

...MISSISSIPPI...
WAVELAND 1.1 NW                     14.11                      
FLORENCE 0.9 E                      13.45                      
SAUCIER 6.4 ESE                     11.75                      
GULFPORT 2.0 NE                     11.71                      
LONG BEACH 0.7 S                    11.59                      
PASS CHRISTIAN 5.0 N                11.31                      
RICHLAND 0.3 WSW                    11.25                      
PHILADELPHIA 5.4 E                  11.18                      
JACKSON WFO                         11.15                      
GULFPORT-BILOXI                     11.14                      
PASCAGOULA                          10.96     

...NEW YORK...
APALACHIN 3.0 SE                    11.83                      
ENDICOTT 5.2 SSE                    11.46                      
TIOGA TERRACE                       10.64                      
BINGHAMTON/BROOME                   10.09      

...PENNSYLVANIA...
ELIZABETHTOWN 1.1 NNE               15.58                      
PINE GROVE                          14.70                      
PAXTONIA 1.7 E                      13.95                      
HARRISBURG AIRPORT                  13.30                      
MUIR AAF/INDIANTOWN                 12.58                      
WILLIAMSPORT                        10.20          

...TENNESSEE...
CLEVELAND 3 ESE                     12.22                      
CHARLESTON                          11.50                      
CHATTANOOGA-LOVELL FIELD (ASOS)     10.28        

...VIRGINIA...
COLONIAL BEACH 1.2 SSE              20.96                      
WOODBRIDGE 0.5 SSW                  16.20                      
LORTON 1.2 NE                       15.09                      
FORT BELVOIR/DAVISON AFB            13.77                      
RESTON 2 N                          11.45                      
CHANTILLY 2 ESE                     10.18      

All-Time Daily Rainfall Record at Binghamton: Second in 2 Years

Image (click to enlarge): Binghamton region 24-hour precipitation ending 8 am EDT, Sept. 8, from National Weather Service

6 PM Update: As of 5 pm, an additional 1.41" of rain has fallen at Binghamton today, bringing the monthly total to 10.08" and the yearly total to 51.27". After slightly more than a week, this month's total is now the second highest all-time amount, behind the 11.45" in June 2006.

Original post:
After setting an all-time daily precipitation record just last September, Binghamton, New York has smashed that record by a wide margin with 7.49" yesterday (Sept. 7). Since the previous record was set in 2006, the 3 highest daily rainfall amounts at Binghamton have now occurred within the last 5 years. Climate records began in 1951 at the current airport location, but climate data in the city extend back to 1890. The record rainfall for any 24-hour period at the previous location was 4.55" in Sept. 1924.

The year-to-date total rainfall is also a new all-time annual record.

The National Weather Service report:

A RECORD RAINFALL OF 7.49 INCHES WAS SET AT THE BINGHAMTON REGIONAL
AIRPORT YESTERDAY. THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD FOR SEPTEMBER 7TH OF
0.80 INCHES SET IN 1996.

THIS CALENDAR DAY RAINFALL ALSO SHATTERS THE RECORD FOR ANY DAY.
THE OLD RECORD WAS 4.24 INCHES ON SEPTEMBER 30TH IN 2010.

PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR NOW TOTALS 49.86 INCHES AS OF MIDNIGHT.
THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD FOR ANY YEAR OF 49.78 INCHES SET IN 2006.
NORMAL PRECIPITATION FOR REST OF THE YEAR IS CLOSE TO 10 INCHES SO
THIS SHOULD BREAK THE RECORD BY MANY INCHES.