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 »
Tue, Nov 05, 2019
October's Weather Was Frightful Despite the season, spring and winter weather stole most of the headlines during October. A cold front moved through the… Read More »
Tue, Oct 01, 2019
Summer Weather Scorches September September normally sees at least one or two decent cold fronts to whet the appetite for fall. Mother Nature had… Read More »
Thu, Oct 01, 2020
A historic cold snap set the tone for a cool September, which saw one of the earliest intrusions of winter weather in state history. An unusually strong cold front blasted through the state September 8-9, sending temperatures plummeting up to 50 degrees lower than the previous day’s highs. Lowest maximum and minimum temperature records were shattered across the western half of the state. High temperatures on the ninth struggled to a chilly 40 degrees at Boise City and Kenton following lows of 33 degrees. Those maximum and minimum temperatures were the lowest on record for that early in the fall season in Oklahoma. To find the previous instance of the earliest high temperature of 40 degrees requires a journey back to 1945 when Boise City hit 40 on September 28, a full 19 days later than the new September 2020 record. While wind chills remained in the 20s and 30s across the northwestern quarter of the state, heat index values soared close to 100 degrees in the far southeast, which missed out on the early winter feel altogether. Temperatures moderated through the rest of the month, failing to reach the depths of that early cold snap again. Severe weather was almost non-existent during September, although a brush with Tropical Storm Beta provided an unneeded dose of moisture to the far southeast later in the month.
According to preliminary data from the Oklahoma Mesonet, the statewide average temperature for the month was 69.9 degrees, 2.4 degrees below normal to rank as the 13th coolest September since records began in 1895. Summer weather was present, but certainly not common. Several stations reached 102 degrees on the 25th for the highest readings for the month, although the 120 Mesonet sites recorded only nine triple-digit temperatures for all of September. It was a particularly cool month for south central and southwestern Oklahoma. Both fell below normal by more than 3 degrees to rank as their eighth coolest Septembers on record. The year-to-date statewide average was 64 degrees, 0.7 degrees above normal to rank as the 35th warmest January-September on record.
There was a tremendous difference in rainfall during the month between the northern and southern halves of the state – save for the far southwest, which took dry to another level. From Interstate 40 south, rainfall amounts ranged from 2-5 inches above normal with localized larger totals. Totals north of I-40 fell 1-2 inches below normal. Overall, the September statewide average was 3.81 inches, 0.28 inches above normal and the 43rd wettest September on record. Talihina led the month with 13.2 inches of rain, but 30 Mesonet sites had at least 6 inches during September. The January-September average was 31.69 inches, 3.3 inches above normal to rank as the 24th wettest such period on record.
The cool weather helped preserve rains earlier in the summer and minimize drought expansion, but there was also little in the way of drought improvement. Adding to Oklahoma’s drought worries, below average sea surface temperatures in the Equatorial Pacific could lead to more dry times through early 2021. According to the Climate Prediction Center (CPC), La Niña conditions developed during September and are likely to continue through the winter, prompting the agency to issue a La Niña Advisory. This unhelpful El Niño counterpart can push the jet stream farther to the north across the North American continent, leaving the southern tier of the United States – including Oklahoma – warmer and drier than normal during the cool season. CPC’s October and October-December outlooks reflect La Niña’s influence with increased odds of above normal temperatures and below normal precipitation. CPC’s October drought outlook indicates possible drought expansion across western Oklahoma, while the October-December drought outlook shows that drought expansion extending across nearly all of the state, save for the southeastern corner. Possible implications for the state due to La Niña include further intensification of the current drought and an enhanced wildfire season. CPC forecasters caution that each La Niña is different, and not all impacts occur during every episode – their probabilities are increased, however.