NOAA: Summer 2009 was 34th coolest on record, more than 2,000 record lows recorded

Highlighting the cooler summer, thousands of record low
temperatures were experienced in July 2009. (NCDC)

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced this week that the summer of 2009 was the 34th coolest since 1895. Covering the months from June to August for the contiguous United States, the average temperature was 0.4 degrees below the 20th century average.

Emphasizing the lower temperatures experienced in the United States over the summer, a closer look at the statistics provides some telling information.

Over the three month period, stations reporting to the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) showed 2,254 daily record low temperatures and 1,296 low temperature records were tied according to preliminary data. Similarly, 4,051 daily record low maximums were recorded and 1,501 records were tied across the nation during the summer.

July in particular was notably cooler than normal and the single month by itself counted for roughly half of the records set across the three month summer. For the month, 2,212 record low maximum temperatures were recorded and 737 were tied. 1,225 new record low temperatures were recorded and 657 records were tied.

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Complete NOAA Release - NOAA: Summer Temperature Below Average for U.S.

U.S. Temperature Highlights – Summer

• For the 2009 summer, the average temperature of 71.7 degrees F was 0.4 degree F below the 20th Century average. The 2008 average summer temperature was 72.7 degrees F.
• A recurring upper level trough held the June-August temperatures down in the central states, where Michigan experienced its fifth, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and South Dakota their seventh, Nebraska its eighth, and Iowa its ninth coolest summer. By contrast, Florida had its fourth warmest summer, while Washington and Texas experienced their eighth and ninth warmest, respectively.
• The Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota region experienced its sixth coolest summer on record. Only the Northwest averaged above normal temperatures.

U.S. Temperature Highlights – August

• The average 2009 August temperature of 72.2 degrees F was 0.6 degree F below the 20th Century average. Last year’s August temperature was 73.2 degrees F.
• Temperatures were below normal in the Midwest, Plains, and parts of the south. Above-normal temperatures dominated the eastern seaboard, areas in the southwest, and in the extreme northwest.
• Several northeastern states were much above normal for August, including Delaware and New Jersey (eighth warmest), Maine (ninth), and Rhode Island and Connecticut (10th). In contrast, below-normal temperatures were recorded for Missouri and Kansas.

U.S. Precipitation Highlights – Summer

• The Northeast region had its eighth wettest June-August summer on record. By contrast, the South, Southeast and Southwest regions, were drier than average. Arizona had its third driest summer, while both South Carolina and Georgia had their sixth driest.

U.S. Precipitation Highlights – August

• In August, precipitation across the contiguous United States averaged 2.34 inches, which is 0.26 inch below the 1901-2000 average.
• Above-normal averages were generally recorded across the northern U.S., west of the Great Lakes. The South and Southeast regions experienced below-normal precipitation.
• Precipitation across the Southwest region averaged 0.85 inches, which is 1.10 inches below normal and ranks as the 4th driest August on record. Arizona had its fourth driest, New Mexico its fifth, and it was the eighth driest August on record for Colorado, Utah and Texas.
  

  
   

  High resolution (Credit: NOAA)

• By the end of August, moderate-to-exceptional drought covered 14 percent of the contiguous United States, based on the U.S. Drought Monitor. Drought intensified in parts of the Pacific Northwest and new drought areas emerged in Arizona and the Carolinas. Montana, Wisconsin and Oklahoma saw minor improvements in their drought conditions.
• About 27 percent of the contiguous United States had moderately-to-extremely wet conditions at the end of August, according to the Palmer Index (a well-known index that measures both drought intensity and wet spell intensity). 

Other Highlights

• There were more than 300 low temperature records (counting daily highs and lows) set across states in the Midwest during the last two days of August.
• A total of 7,975 fires burned 1,646,363 acres in August, according to the National Interagency Coordination Center. August 2009 ranked fifth for the number of fires and sixth for acres burned in August this decade. From January through August, 64,682 fires have burned 5.2 million acres across the nation. 

NCDC’s preliminary reports, which assess the current state of the climate, are released soon after the end of each month. These analyses are based on preliminary data, which are subject to revision. Additional quality control is applied to the data when late reports are received several weeks after the end of the month and as increased scientific methods improve NCDC’s processing algorithms.

NOAA understands and predicts changes in the Earth's environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and conserves and manages our coastal and marine resources.

• Source: NOAA: Summer Temperature Below Average for U.S.