Thu, Apr 01, 2021
March Weather More Lamb Than Lion The first month of spring greeted Oklahoma with warmer and more tranquil weather than the historic cold and snowy February… Read More »
Mon, Mar 01, 2021
Historically Frigid February Punctuates Winter Oklahoma experienced a historic cold air event during February, boosting the month into the company of other legendary frozen periods… Read More »
Tue, Feb 02, 2021
Warm and Wet January Greets New Year The winter storm that began the year captured January’s biggest weather headline. The event straddled the changeover from 2020 to… Read More »
Mon, Jan 04, 2021
Winter Flexes Muscles During December A powerful winter storm pounded the state on 2020’s final day, a fitting epitaph to a tumultuous year—and a wintry… Read More »
Mon, Dec 14, 2020
OSU - Mesonet offers management tools to help producers promote cattle comfort OSU News and Information https://news.okstate.edu/articles/agricultural-sciences-natural-resources/2020/stotts_cattle-comfort-advisor.html MEDIA CONTACT: Donald Stotts | Agricultural Communications Services | 405-744-4079 | donald.stotts@okstate.edu Read More »
Tue, Dec 01, 2020
November Sees More Drought, Tornadoes November’s weather struggled to live up to the level of excitement provided by October’s historic cold snap and ice storm,… Read More »
Mon, Nov 02, 2020
Historic Storm Haunts October A historic winter ice storm struck the state during the last week of October, leaving nearly 400,000 residences and businesses… Read More »
Thu, Oct 15, 2020
Spring 2021 Mesonet OK-First Classes Spring 2021 OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! For just the second time in program… Read More »
Thu, Oct 01, 2020
Winter Chill Stuns September A historic cold snap set the tone for a cool September, which saw one of the earliest intrusions of winter… Read More »
Tue, Sep 01, 2020
Cold Fronts Tame August Heat Three strong cold fronts brought the summer heat to its knees during August, but drought took advantage of a… Read More »
Mon, Aug 03, 2020
July Sees Drought Relief July brought a near miraculous recovery to much of Oklahoma, which was faced with an intensifying drought headed into… Read More »
Thu, Jul 02, 2020
June Rains Falter As Drought Surges Largely deprived of its primary rainy season, Oklahoma saw drought surge across the state during June. A mid-month bout with… Read More »
Wed, Jun 03, 2020
Tornado Count Slows During May Cool weather dominated a good part of May, and possibly robbed Mother Nature of the heat needed for her… Read More »
Wed, May 20, 2020
Summer/Fall 2020 Mesonet OK-First Classes Summer/Fall 2020 OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! For the first time in program history… Read More »
Fri, May 01, 2020
Weather Hazards Battle for April Headlines It’s difficult to say which weather hazard should claim top billing for April. Two late season freeze events made their… Read More »
Wed, Apr 01, 2020
Spring Steps Forward During March Winter seemed to take a final bow after February in Oklahoma, leaving March with a warm and wet transition to… Read More »
Mon, Mar 02, 2020
Snowstorm Highlights February Weather In February, Oklahoma finally received a month worthy of winter. It wasn’t tremendously cold, nor was it excessively wet, but… Read More »
Tue, Feb 04, 2020
Snow Thrives Despite Warm January Although January’s weather continued this winter’s general tilt towards unusually mild conditions, that failed to prevent several bouts of wintry… Read More »
Fri, Jan 03, 2020
December Tornado Caps Record Year Warm and mostly dry December weather dashed any hopes of walking in a winter wonderland, including dreams of a white… Read More »
Mon, Dec 02, 2019
November Feels Winter Chill November’s weather was somewhat tame by Oklahoma’s standards, with cold weather dominating the headlines. Several intrusions of arctic air blasted… Read More »
Mon, Nov 02, 2020
A historic winter ice storm struck the state during the last week of October, leaving nearly 400,000 residences and businesses without power. The extreme nature of the event – arguably the most impactful early-season winter storm in the history of Oklahoma – was punctuated by heavy snow in the Panhandle and flooding rains in eastern sections of the state. Trees, still burdened with a full head of leaves so early in the season, were easy prey for radial ice accumulations of up to 3 inches across western and central Oklahoma. Downed branches felled power lines, clogged streets and snarled traffic. The power lines themselves sagged and fell under the weight of the frozen accumulation. Many school districts in the ice storm’s footprint closed for the remainder of the week due to continued challenges with debris and lack of power. Areas to the west received more sleet and snow than freezing rain, and areas to the east were inundated with cold, flooding rains. Snow and sleet totals across far western Oklahoma were generally between 2-4 inches, although as much as 9 inches was reported in localized areas. The frigid weather that came with the storm was as historic as the ice. Record low minimum and maximum temperatures were shattered across western Oklahoma October 26-27. Highs in the Panhandle on the 26th only rose into the low to mid-20s, breaking their previous record low maximum temperature by 15-20 degrees. The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security reported 132 injuries as a result of the storm, with 58 of those from falls and another 28 due to motor vehicle accidents.
The late winter storm provided the first significant moisture since early September for much of western Oklahoma. According to preliminary data from the Oklahoma Mesonet, the statewide average total for the month ended at 3.37 inches, 0.17 inches above normal, to rank as the 45th wettest October since records began in 1895. Individual amounts from Mesonet sites ranged from 6.9 inches in Cookson to 0.57 inches in Kenton. Despite the deluge, parts of southern Oklahoma were still 2-3 inches below normal for the month. The late burst of moisture helped propel the January-October statewide average to 35.75 inches, 3.82 inches above normal, to rank as the 21st wettest January-October on record. That surplus was mostly built on gaudy totals 10-20 inches above normal across the southeastern half of the state, however. The western Panhandle and parts of west central Oklahoma had deficits of 7-10 inches over the first 10 months of the year.
The month began on the cool side and finished on the frigid side, resulting in a statewide average temperature of 57.8 degrees, 3.1 degrees below normal, to rank as the 13th coolest October on record. The state’s first freeze of the season came at Eva and Hooker on the 12th – just a few days earlier than average – when each bottomed out at 32 degrees. On the other side of the thermometer, 2020’s presumable final triple-digit readings came on the 14th when Altus, Hollis and Mangum each reached 100 degrees. Grandfield and Hollis each recorded 102 degrees on the 11th for the month’s highest reading. Boise City and Kenton reported the lowest temperature of the month at 14 degrees on the 26th. The statewide average year-to-date temperature of 63.4 degrees was 0.4 degrees above normal to rank as the 47th warmest January-October on record.
Drought surged during October before abating somewhat due to the late-month moisture. Drought coverage reached a high of 38% of the state on October 20 according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, up from 18% at the end of September. The month’s final map on October 27 reflected improvements with drought coverage down to 32% of the state. The outlook for further drought improvement is slim through November for much of the remaining drought area, according to the Climate Prediction Center (CPC). CPC’s November outlooks indicate increased odds of above normal temperature and below normal precipitation for Oklahoma. Their November drought outlook does see some drought improvement across the northwest, but that is for moisture from late October not yet accounted for in the latest Drought Monitor map. The remaining area of drought is expected to persist through November.