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Today in New York Weather History: October 5

 

1888 (Friday)

Today's high of 66° was the warmest reading this month, making October 1888 the only October to have its warmest reading be cooler than 70°.  (Three other Octobers' warmest readings have been 70°, most recently in 1977.)

 

1922 (Thursday)

Today's high soared to 89° and was the fifth day since 9/30 with a high in the 80s.  (The average high at the beginning of October is in the upper 60s.)  Today's high was a record until 1941.

 

1941 (Sunday)

The hottest temperature ever experienced in New York in October occurred today as the high soared to 94°.  This was 28 degrees above average.  Today was the middle day of a three-day stretch of summer-like heat; each day's high was a record, all which still stand (88°, 94°, and 90°).

 

94degrees_game.jpg

 

1979 (Friday)

0.79" of rain poured down between 7-9 PM. 

 

1991 (Saturday)

Today was the 19th day this year with a low of 65°, which is the greatest annual frequency for a low temperature of any year in the 1970-2023 period.  (In 2005 the high of 82° occurred twenty times, which is the most frequent high temperature during any year.) 

 

1995 (Thursday)

1.99" of rain fell today, with 0.82" pouring down between 11 PM-midnight.  It was a record rainfall for the date, the first of three rainfall records this month.  This was also the first of four rainstorms in October that produced more than an inch of rain.  

 

Downpour_nighttime 

 

2012 (Friday)

Under clear skies, the afternoon high reached 78°, the warmest reading of the month.  It was also the 13th time this year that this high temperature was reported - the greatest frequency of any high temperature in 2012.

 

2019 (Saturday)

It was a clear and brisk day, with a high/low of 61°/45°.  This was the first low in the 40s this fall - and the chilliest first 40 since 2003 and 2002 (both at 44°).  Today's low came less than 72 hours after a sizzling high of 93°.  And while this was certainly quite a transition, there have been eight years in which the first low in the 40s came before the final 90°+ reading (the most recent being in 1961).

 

2022 (Wednesday)

Rain that fell today (0.37" was measured from showers throughout the day) ended a 13-year streak with no rain on this date.

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September 2024 Recap: Seasonable Temperatures, Below Average Rainfall


Goodbye Summer Screenshot 2024-10-01 183058

Through 9/26, September 2024 appeared likely to become the third driest September on record as just 0.36" of rain had fallen in Central Park.  Then, from 9/27-29, outer bands of showers from the remnants of Hurricane Helene produced 1.22" of rain.  Although it was still a very dry month, the driest since March 2023, it ended up ranking 23rd among all Septembers.  (By contrast, last September had 14.25" of rain, making it the second wettest September on record.) 

 

Temperature-wise, the month ended up a wee bit below average (-0.4 degree).  Thru 9/11 temperatures were four degrees cooler than average, but the rest of the month was two degrees above average.  This followed a cooler than average August (-1.0 degree).  The last time Central Park experienced back-to-back months with below average temperatures was in May and June of last year.    

 

The month's warmest reading was just 84° (on 9/19), which was the coolest reading to have this distinction in September since 2009.  Its coolest reading was 55° (on 9/8 and 9/9); only three other September have had a milder reading for their coolest temperature: Sept. 1910 (57°); Sept. 1921 (56°), and Sept. 2015 (56°).

 

In a typical September the difference between the coolest and warmest temperature is 38 degrees (51° and 89°, respectively).  This year's gap was just 29 degrees (55° and 84°), making it the smallest gap since another 29-degree difference in September 1908 (51° and 80°).

 

Although there were no readings in the 90s, 9/1 had a low of 73°, the only day of the month with a low in the 70s. Only eight days had lows in the 50s, and they were all in the 55°-59° range.  Additionally, there was an unusual concentration of lows in the 59° to 63° range, 20 of them.  A typical September has nine. 

 

Finally, during the three-week period from 9/2 to 9/22, the City enjoyed sixteen days with either clear or sunny skies, including nine days in a row.  Then, at the end of the month, there was a 5-day streak with overcast skies.  Another streak of note was one of 15 days with no rain, which was Central Park's longest dry streak in three-and-a-half years.

 

Here are recaps of previous Septembers:

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

 


Recap of August 2024: First Month of 2024 To Be Cooler Than Average

 

August watermelon

 

Despite starting with highs in the 90s on five of the first days of the month, August 2024 was the first month since November 2023 with a cooler than average monthly temperature (1.0 degree below average).  This was also the first August since 2013 to have a low temperature chillier than 60°.  And the low of 57° on 8/21 was the chilliest August reading since 2007.  It was also the first August since 2008 with two lows in the 50s.

 

This was the second rainiest month of 2024, with 7.02” measured (March had 9.06").  Two days picked up more than two inches (2.08" on 8/6, 2.29" on 8/18).  Among all Augusts, August 2024 ranks as 27th wettest (out of 156 going back to 1869).

 

Five of the first six days of the month had highs in the 90s (8/1 had the hottest high of the month, 95°) and those days were five degrees warmer than average.  Then the rest of the months was two-and-a-half degrees below average (8/28 was an outlier, with a high of 91°).

 

August 2024 and August 2023 had similar average temperatures (75.1° and 75.0°, respectively) and similar rainfall, but there was a big difference in the range between each month's coolest and hottest temperatures (38 degrees vs. 25 degrees, respectively). 

 

Chart - Aug 2024 v Aug 2023
  

On average, August is 4.1 degrees warmer than June, but this year both had the same temperature.  This was the 13th year in which both months had very similar temperatures.

 

Chart - Aug 2024 v Jun 2024

 

The sixth longest streak of highs of 80+, 38 days, ended on 8/6.  This was the longest such streak since the summer of 2015, which had the longest on record (62 days).

 

After 31 of 38 days had lows in the 70s between June 30-Aug. 6, only five of the next 25 days (thru Aug. 31) had lows that warm.

 

After June-July 2024 was the third warmest on record, meteorological summer 2024 had a shot at being hottest of all time, but with August being one degree below average, the summer ended up as New York's 15th hottest (still a very high rank).  If August had an average temperature, it would have made 2024's meteorological summer the third hottest. 

 

Here are recaps of previous Augusts:

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

 


July 2024 Weather Recap: Hot First Half, Seasonable Second Half


Summer in the city

 

During the first half of July 2024 it appeared the month might become one of the three hottest Julys on record.  Between July 1-17 the average temperature was four degrees above average, with nine days reporting highs in the 90s and seven days with lows of 75° or warmer.  Then the weather pattern shifted and the last two weeks of the month cooled down to seasonable readings, and the month entered the record books tied for 11th hottest with July 1949 (2.1 degrees warmer than average). 

 

This July was just the fourth month on record to have no high temperatures cooler than 80° (the average number is six).  And its 24 days with lows of 70° or warmer was the third most of any July (tied with nine other Julys, including 2023 and 2022).

 

The hottest periods of July were July 4-11 (with every day having a high of 89° or hotter) and July 14-17 (every day in the 90s); both periods had the same average high/low of 91°/75°, six degrees above average.  (The month’s other 19 days had an average high/low of 84°/70°.)  The hottest reading of the month was 95° on 7/8, the warmest low was 79° on 7/7. 

 

The last of the month's nine days in the 90s was on 7/17.  At that point, Central Park had experienced 15 days of 90+ for the year (all of the them between 6/20 and 7/17), which was the 14th most on record by that date (going back to 1869). 

 

Going into the evening of 7/31, it appeared the month would be the 10th hottest July on record.  However, a brief shower at 9:30 cooled the temperature from 88° to 73°, which was five degrees below the morning’s low of 78°.  This change was enough to  knock it out of 10th place (behind July 1966).   

 

July's coolest temperature was 64°, which was reported on 7/1.  Only six Julys have had a milder reading for their coolest temperature (eight others also had 64° as their coolest reading). 

 

As for rainfall, all but 0.39” of the month’s 4.20” fell during the week of 7/11-17.  July’s total rainfall was slightly below average (by 0.40”) and was the driest July since 2017 (which had 4.19”).  By contrast, the Julys between 2018-2023 averaged 6.60” of rain.  Most of this July’s rain came from two storm systems that were five days apart as 2.06” fell on 7/13 and 1.46” fell on 7/17. 

 

Although July's rank for average temperature was 11th, for average low (72.1°) it ranked sixth, but for average high (87.2°) it ranked 17th.

 

Finally, while Central Park and LaGuardia Airport both had nine days with highs of 90+, Newark had 14, but JFK had just one (on the last day of the month).  Looking at highs of 88+, the four sites reported 20, 16, 12, and one, respectively.  JFK isn't usually so different from the other stations, but this July regularly had winds from out of the south, off the ocean, which had a moderating effect on the daytime temperatures at JFK.

 

Here are recaps of previous Julys:

July 2023

July 2022

July 2021

July 2020

July 2019

July 2018

July 2017

July 2016

July 2015

July 2014


June 2024 Weather Recap: 4th Warmest on Record

 


Sunny june

 

June 2024 was the warmest June since 1994, and the fourth warmest June on record.  The hottest period was the eight days between 6/19 - 6/26 when the average high/low was 90°/73°, with six of the days reporting highs in the 90s.  The reading of 94° on 6/21 was not only the hottest reading of the month, it was hotter than any day last year. 

 

A dozen days in June were five degrees or more above average while just one was five degrees or more below average. This was the seventh month in a row that was warmer than average; five of them, including June, were three degrees or more above average (June was +3.1 degrees).

 
Chart - 5 warmest junes

With 1.71” of rain measured in Central Park, this was the 21st driest June on record (tied with June 1926).  This was the second consecutive June with less than two inches of rain (1.62" fell last year).  About half of the month’s rain, 0.77”, fell on 6/6.  After that, less than an inch of rain fell for the rest of the month.   

 

Just one day had a low cooler than 60°.  (A typical June has seven such days.) This occurred on 6/11, when the low was 59° - the mildest reading of any of June's coolest low temperatures (going back to 1869).  

 

The month's coolest high temperature was 73° (typically, June’s coolest high is in the mid-60s).  Only two other Junes have had a milder reading as their coolest high temperatures - 74° in June 1994, and 76° in June 1925 (on eight days).

 

Finally, three days had afternoon humidity levels lower than 25% (on 6/1, 6/25, and 6/28) - the most of any June in the years since 2000.

 

Here are links to June recaps from the previous eight years:

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

 


May 2024 Weather Recap: Mild Nights, Average Rainfall

 

May stock photo-masalskaya

 

May 2024 was 1.8 degrees warmer than average, its rainfall of 4.11" was slightly above average.  This was the sixth consecutive month with above average temperatures and it was the 24th mildest May on record; however, it ranked eighth based on average low (which was 2.4 degrees above average), but ranked 41st based on average high (1.1 degree above average).

 

The highlight of the month was a seven-day streak (May 22-28) with lows of 65° or milder, the longest streak of its kind in May on record.  For the entire month there were eight days with lows of 65°+, the second most on record (tied with May 1908 and one fewer than May 1880).  Interestingly, no lows were in the 70s (41 Mays have had one or more ).  During this streak the temperature was eight degrees warmer than average.  (The rest of the month had average temperatures.)

 

Chart - may longest streaks of 65 or warmer lows

 

On average, May’s warmest temperature is five degrees above April’s (88° vs. 83°), but this May's warmest reading of 84° (which happened on three days: 5/8, 5/22, and 5/24) was three degrees below April’s hottest temperature.  It joined twenty other Mays that had their warmest reading cooler than April's (including last May).

 

The month's coolest reading was 47° on 5/11.  Only seven Mays have had a milder reading as their chilliest (including last May); in those years the reading was either 48° or 49°.  Four other Mays have had their coolest reading also be 47°. 

 

Between 5/23 and 5/30, 2.59” of the month’s 4.11” of rain fell.  0.96" of this amount fell on Memorial Day from downpours shortly after daybreak and during mid-afternoon, making it the rainiest day of May, and the eighth wettest Memorial Day of them all.  On 5/23 the day's 0.78" of rain fell mostly between 9:30 and 11 AM (resulting in ground stops at the area's three major airports).

 

Although Memorial Day had two downpours and overcast skies, the Saturday and Sunday of the holiday weekend had sunny skies and summer-like highs/lows of  81°/66° and 82°/65°, respectively 

 

Here are past recaps of May's weather going back to 2015:

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015


April 2024 Weather Recap: A Near-Miss For Top-10 Mildest

 

Apr 28 - westside hwy

 

March’s very wet conditions (the fourth wettest March on record) continued into April as 2.64” of rain fell during its first four days.  But despite the wet start, the month's total rainfall ended up being below average (3.47") as just 0.83” fell after 4/4 (and only 0.14" in the second half).

 

April 2024 was 1.9 degrees above average and was the 11th mildest April on record (tied with 1994).  The warmest reading was 87° on 4/29.  This reading joined two other days with highs of 80+ earlier in the month (80° on 4/9, 82° on 4/15).  And one day had a high of 79° (4/28).

 

Like April 2023 (the second mildest April on record), this April's chilliest reading was 37° (on 4/4).  Only four other Aprils have had a milder coldest reading: 42° in 1878 (on six days); 40° in 2010; and 38° in 2012 and 2022.  April 2024 is one of seven Aprils whose chilliest reading was 37°.

 

The day of April's warmest high temperature also featured the year's first low in the 60s (63°).  This was close to the typical date for this occurrence.

 

Usually the metro area's three major airports report higher wind gusts than Central Park, but during the nor'easter that lashed the City on 4/2, Central Park clocked the highest gust.  And at 59 mph, it was the highest there since superstorm Sandy in Oct. 29, 2012.  

 

Finally, as April came to a close, April 28 reported 0.01” of rain, 4/29 had 0.02”, and 4/30 had 0.03”.

 

Here are previous recaps from April:

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016


March 2024 Weather Recap: 4th Wettest, 8th Mildest on Record

 

Mar 16 - abington square dafs

 

March 2024 was 5.3 degrees warmer than average, becoming the eighth mildest March on record (just 0.1 degree milder than March 2020).  It was the fourth month in a row with above average temperatures; combined, they were 4.6 degrees above average. 

 

Not only was March on the mild side, it was very rainy, with 9.06" was measured in Central Park, making it the fourth wettest March on record.  Half of this amount fell in the first nine days of the month - the wettest first nine days of March on record.  The month had four days with an inch or more of rain.  By far the rainiest was 3/23, which had 3.66", a record amount for the date.  

 

The first nine days and last nine days of the month had equally excessive amounts of rain, while the middle 13 days picked up just 0.04".

Chart - march 2024 rainfall in 3 parts

Ten days were 10 degrees or more above average (six were consecutive, March 12-17).  Only six days were colder than average (five were consecutive, March 21-25).

 

The coldest high temperature in March was 43° (on 3/21), which was the mildest coldest reading of any March on record.  (The coldest high in March is typically around 33°.)  FYI, February 2024 had February's mildest coldest high (36°).

 

Like last March, March 2024's coldest low temperature was 29°, which occurred on 3/22.  Only three Marches have had a milder coldest low: 1942 (33°); 1871 (31°); and 1973 (30°).

 

Each of the first 18 days of the month had an above-average mean temperature; these days were nearly ten degrees milder than average.  (Temperatures during the remainder of the month fell back to earth and were about one degree below average.)  March 12-17 was 15 degrees above average (averaging a high/low of 67°/47°), including back-to-back days with highs in the 70s (74° on the 14th, 73° on the 15th).  Although neither reading was a record, the high of 68° on 3/3 was.

 

March had no measurable snow, making it the 23rd March with no accumulating snow reported.  (Since 2000, March has averaged four inches of snow.)

 

St. Patrick's Day and Easter Sunday (which fell on 3/31) both featured fair skies and had highs/lows that were very similar: 63°/48° (13 degrees above average), and 62°/47° (seven degrees above average), respectively.  However, the Mets weren't as fortunate, as its home opener (on 3/28) was postponed due to chilly and rainy conditions.  And the following afternoon, when the game was rescheduled, high winds were an issue (gusts were between 30-40 mph).

 

Finally, 10 days had very low humidity (i.e., 25% or lower).  The lowest reading was 15% during the afternoon of 3/11.  For the tenth time this century low humidity was reported on March 30 (bottoming out at 16% late in the afternoon) - the most of any calendar date. 

 

Here are previous March recaps:

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

 


February 2024 Weather Recap: Mild, on the Dry Side

 


Feb 2024 calendar

 

February 2024 was 4.2 degrees milder than average, becoming New York's 10th mildest February (and the fourth Leap Year February to rank among the 10 mildest Februarys).  Following a January that was 3.3 degrees milder than average, and a December that was +5.5 degrees, these three months produced the fourth mildest meteorological winter on record.  And it followed the third mildest winter last year.

 

Additionally, the number of days completely above freezing this winter, 59, was the second most of any winter.  The most?  Last winter, which had 60 days. (The average number is 36 days.)

 

Chart - 5 mildest winters (including 2023-24)

The month’s coldest and warmest readings occurred three days apart.  The coldest reading, 23° on 2/25, was the mildest coldest reading on record of any February.  (February’s coldest reading is typically in the low teens; last year it was 3°).  The month’s mildest reading, 62°, happened during the night of 2/28.  This was the 14th February to have this reading as its mildest temperature, tying it with 58° as the most-occurring mildest reading in February.  (Also on the night of the 28th, Central Park clocked a wind gust of 49 mph as a cold front passed through.)  

 

Not only was the coldest low temperature not very cold, neither was the coldest high.  On average, the coldest high in February is 26°, but this February it was 36°, the mildest coldest high on record.  (Before this year, the mildest coldest high in February was 33°, in 2002, 1998, and 1997.)

 

The month was among the top 20% driest Februarys, with 2.05” of precipitation measured (making it the 31st driest February).  More than half of the precipitation fell on two days, 0.77” on the 13th and 0.52” on the 28th

 

The month had 5.2” of snow, which fell on 2/13 (3.2") and 2/17 (2.0").   Of the four weather stations in the metro area, Central Park reported the smallest amount, as 10.4" fell at JFK, Newark had 9.1”, and LGA measured 6.6”.  Although JFK and CPK had comparable amounts of liquid (0.98” and 0.95”, respectively), JFK had twice as much snow.

 

Feb 17 snowfall

 

Like January, February had one week that was on the cold side (but not quite as cold as January's).  While Feb. 14-20 was two degrees colder than average, the month's other three weeks were six degrees milder than average.

 

Finally, a streak of 22 days with above average mean temperatures ended on 2/13.  Only three other streaks this century have been longer.

 

Here are other February recaps:

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2015

 


January 2024 Weather Recap: A One-Week Taste of Winter

 

One out of four

 

Historically, there has often been a period in late January referred to as the "January Thaw", when a brief respite from winter's cold took place.  This year, however, New York experienced the reverse, as there was a "January Freeze" between January 15 and 21.   The average high/low during this freeze was 30°/21°, with six of the seven days having a high of 32° or colder.  

 

This period was seven degrees below average; meanwhile, the rest of the month was seven degrees above average.  This produced a temperature for the entirety of the month that was 3.3 degrees above average, making January 2024 the 25th mildest January on record.  While the month's average high was 2.5 degrees above average, the average low was 4.0 degrees above average (ranked by average low, January 2024 was 17th mildest).

 

During the January freeze, Central Park had the winter's first day with a high of 32° or colder, the second latest date for this occurrence (behind the winter of 1987). 

 

Although it was on the mild side, this January was 6.5 degrees colder than last January (which was the mildest on record).  

 

With 5.28" of precipitation, January 2024 was the wettest January of the century (and 21st among all Januarys).  Two-thirds of its rain was from three storm systems: 1.95" on 1/9-10; 0.89" on 1/12-13, and 0.87" on 1/28-29.  The rainfall on 1/9 was a record amount for the date. 

 

Adding January's precipitation to that of December's 6.71" made this the wettest Dec/Jan combo since 1978-79, and the seventh wettest Dec/Jan on record (with an amount that was 50% above average).  

 

Clipart - Most Dec-Jan Rain

(Note: If the chart above excluded precipitation that was snow, Dec/Jan of 2023-24's rank would rise to fifth, passing 1948-49 and 1977-78 (which had 27.1" and 20.7" of snow, respectively, while 2023/24 had just 2.3".

 

January's mildest reading was 60° (on 1/13), coldest was 17° (on 1/17).  The Arctic high that delivered this frigid cold to the Rockies, Plains, Midwest, Great Lakes, and the South, gave New York just a glancing blow.  Nine days had readings of ten degrees or more above average, two were ten or more below average.

 

The biggest snowfall was 1.7" on Jan. 15-16.   The 0.2" of snow that fell on 1/6 was the first measurable snow this winter and one of the latest dates for the first such snowfall.  In total, 2.3" of snow fell in January, which was the amount of snow that fell during the entirety of last winter.

 

Finally, the last nine days of the month were all overcast.

 

Here are recaps of weather in January from previous years:

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2015

2014

 

 

 


Rundown of 2024 Weather Highlights

 


2024

 

JANUARY

6 - The first measurable snow of the winter, 0.2", fell early in the afternoon, but was quickly washed away by rain.  The day's high/low was 37°/31°.  This snowfall was about three weeks later than the average date of Central Park's first measurable snowfall, but it was four weeks earlier than last winter's first snowfall (0.4" on 2/1, which was the latest date on record for the first measurable snowfall ).

9 - After a sunny morning, a powerful storm system affecting the South, Midwest, and Ohio Valley moved into the New York area, bringing strong winds gusting between 35-45 mph, and a hard rain after dark.  The 1.73" of rain that fell today was a record amount for the date (rain after midnight added 0.22" to today's total).  The day's high of 57° was reached as midnight approached, and was the mildest reading since 12/18. 

15 - With a high of 29°, today was the first day this winter with a high of 32° or colder, which was about four weeks later than the typical date for this occurrence.  Only the winter of 1987  had a later occurrence - on 1/20 (the winter of 1975's first occurrence was on 1/14).  Light snow moved in after 9 PM and accumulated 0.4" by midnight (an additional 1.3" fell the next morning). 

17 - With a high/low of 24°/17°, today would be the coldest day of the winter, one of the ten mildest coldest days of any winter.  (Since 1980, the average high/low of the coldest day of a winter has been 20°/8°).   Only the winter of 2002 would have a milder reading for a winter's coldest reading (20°).

21 - This was the sixth day of the past seven to have a high of 32° or colder.  (Last winter had four such days in total.) After highs and lows averaged 46°/34° during the first two weeks of January, the seven days that followed averaged 30°/21°.  Although this was cold, it was just a glancing blow from an Arctic high pressure system that poured frigid cold into the Midwest, Great Plains, and the South (Central Park's coldest reading was 17°).  

28 - It was a rainy and raw day.  0.82" of rain fell (most of it in the morning) and afternoon temperatures were in the upper 30s.  Today's rainfall brought the month's total precipitation to 5.23", tying it with January 2015 as the wettest January of the century (with 0.05" of rain tomorrow, the tie would be broken). 

31 - The morning lows of today and the three previous days were: 37° (1/28)-36°-35°-34° (today).  And this was the ninth consecutive day with overcast skies.  

 

FEBRUARY

3 - At long last, after suffering through 11 days in a row of overcast skies, today featured wall-to-wall sunshine under clear skies.  And the day’s low of 32° was the first of 32° or colder since 1/22 as well.  Another streak, however, continued as today, with a high/low of 43°/32°,  was the twelfth day in a row with above average temperatures (averaging eight degrees above average).

13 -  A morning snowfall of  3.2" accumulated in Central Park, an accumulation that was likely reduced because the temperature remained above 32° all morning (the amount of liquid measured was 0.77").  Late in the afternoon the sun came out and the mercury rose to 41°. 

Although NYC had one of the smallest accumulations from today's storm, the amount was the biggest accumulation in temperatures above freezing since April 2, 2018 when 5.5" fell (high/low was 43°/33°; today's was 41°/33°).

14 - With a high/low of 38°/29°, today's mean temperature was slightly below average, breaking a 22-day streak of above average temperatures.  In this century, only the winters of 2023, 2016, and 2007 have had longer streaks (36, 34, and 32 days, respectively).

17 - Today's high of 36° was the coldest daily high of the month - the mildest reading to be the coldest high in February on record.  The average coldest high in February is in the mid-20s.  (In the years before 1930, it was in the upper teens.)

25 - Today's low of 23° was the coldest reading of the month, making it the mildest coldest reading of any February (the previous mildest coldest reading in February was 22° in 1927).  On average, the coldest reading in February is in the low teens (last February it was 3°).  

 

MARCH

3 - After rainy and foggy conditions yesterday (1.27" of rain fell, mostly in the afternoon and evening), today couldn't have been nicer as skies were sunny and the temperature rose to  68°, which was a record for the date, and the warmest reading in Central Park since late October, when the high reached 80° on 10/28.  And this morning's low of 48° was two degrees above the average high for the date.

9 - Today was the third day this month to have an inch or more of rain.  The 1.53" that fell in the PM hours, most of it after 8 PM, brought the month's total rainfall to 4.54" - the most precipitation to fall in the first nine days of March on record.  And this amount was more than double what fell in all of February (2.05"). 

11 - It was a sunny day with howling winds that gusted between 50-60 mph, as well as very low humidity that bottomed out at 15% late in the afternoon (the lowest reported in Central Park since last April).  The winds were generated by a deepening coastal storm near Canada's Maritime provinces (the same low responsible for dumping 1.56" of rain on NYC mostly on Saturday). 

19 - With a high/low of 48°/36°, today had the first below average mean temperature of the month (two degrees below average).  Ironically, it happened on the first day of spring (which didn't start until 11:06 PM).  This 18-day streak of above average temperatures followed a 22-day streak earlier in the winter (Jan. 23-Feb. 13.)

23 - A record amount of rain fell.  Starting shortly before sunrise and continuing thru late afternoon, 3.66" was measured in Central Park, more than twice as much as the previous record amount for the date (1.60" in 1929).  At its heaviest, two inches of rain poured down in the three hours between 1-4 PM. 

This was the fourth day this month to receive more than an inch of rain.  The amount was the most from a March rainstorm since 2010, when there were two that each produced a little more than four inches.  (March 2010 is the wettest March on record).  Today's rainfall moved March 2024 into the top 10 wettest Marches (ranked#6).

28 - For the second year in a row the Mets' home opener was postponed.  This year it was because of light rain; last year it was in anticipation of rain that didn't materialize.  The next day the game was played in very windy conditions (gusts of 30-40 mph), skies were partly cloudy, and the afternoon temperature was in the seasonable low-to-mid-50s. 

30 - For the tenth time this century, the humidity level dropped to 25% or lower on 3/30 - the most times for any calendar date (tied later this year on 4/16). The lowest level reported today was 16% at 4 PM.

 

APRIL

3 - A nor’easter that developed overnight cranked up as the day went on, with steady rain that was accompanied by tropical storm-force winds.  A peak gust of 59 mph was clocked in Central Park late tonight, NYC's highest gust since one of 62 mph during superstorm Sandy on 10/29/12.  After 0.87” of rain fell yesterday, 1.55” of rain poured down today (and an additional 0.21” would fall in the pre-dawn hours of 4/4).  PM temperatures were stuck in the low 40s.

9 - Under mostly clear skies, the day's high temperature in Central Park reached 80°, the year's first reading in the 80s.  This was about two weeks ahead of schedule (last year's first 80 was on 4/6).   The area's three major airports, however, didn't see 80° as Newark's high was 77°, LaGuardia's was 75°, and the high at JFK was 69°. 

15 - It was partly cloudy and unseasonably warm as the high reached the 80s for the second time this year.  Today's high was 82° (20 degrees above average), which was the warmest reading since 10/4 of last year, when the high was 83°.  

18 - The day was raw, gray and breezy with a chilly high of 50°. (With the exception of one hour, the mercury was stuck at 47° from daybreak thru midnight.).  This followed highs of 62° yesterday, 73° the day before that, and 82° on 4/15. 

25 - The humidity dropped to 12% for a few hours this afternoon, the lowest level reported this year, and matching last year's lowest humidity (on 4/11).  

29 - The high got up to 87° today, 20 degrees above average, and the warmest reading in Central Park since 9/8 of last year when the high reached 90°. 

 

MAY 

16 - Today and yesterday had the same high/low of 64°/59° as well as nearly identical amounts of rain that fell mostly during the AM hours (0.27" today, 0.28" yesterday).  5/13 also had a high/low of 64°/59° (but there was no rain).  This was the second pair of identical highs/lows on May 15-16; the first occurrence was in 1978 (high/low of 54°/50°).

27 - It was a dismal Memorial Day, with a brief downpour shortly after daybreak, when 0.20” fell, and again in the early afternoon when 0.74” fell, mostly between 2:00 and 3:00.  With 0.96” in total, this was the rainiest Memorial Day since 2016 (when 1.65" fell before 9 AM), and eighth wettest on record.   Despite the low ceiling and wet conditions, the high was seasonable and the low of 66° was eight degrees milder than average.

 

JUNE

5 - Today's high/low of 79°/65° was identical to yesterday's.  However, while the 4th had mostly clear skies, today's skies were lightly overcast.  In 1917, June 4 and 5 also had the same high/low (78°/58°).

6 - It was a day of wicked humidity as the dew point held at 72° for six hours between 7 AM and 1 PM and then rose to 76° for a few hours late in the afternoon.  The only saving grace was that the temperature got no higher than 81°.  Heavy showers before sunrise and in the middle of the afternoon produced most of the day's 0.77" of rain in Central Park.  

11 - Today's low of 59° would be the month's chilliest temperature, the mildest reading to have this designation in June.  This broke a long-standing record from 1892 (and in five other Junes), whose chilliest low was 58°.

17 - This was the seventh day since 6/4 with a low of 65° (and the the fourth day of the past five).  

20 - Although today had the year's first reading in the 90s (91°), yesterday, which had a high of 89°, was noticeably more humid and uncomfortable, with a scorching heat index of 99° versus today's 92°.  (Despite the fact the first 90 happened three weeks later than average, a typical year sees just two days in the 90s by 6/20.)

26 - With a high of 93°, this was the sixth day of the past seven with a high in the 90s (ranging from 90° to 94°).  And today was the eighth day of the past nine with a low in the 70s (ranging from 70° to 76°).

27 - The 0.23" of rain that fell between 1:00 and 3 :00 AM was the same amount that fell on this date 100 years ago.  However, in 1924 the rain fell between 8:45 AM and 4:15 PM and the high/low was much cooler (69°/59° vs. this year's 84°/67°). 

 

JULY

4 - Sunny, very warm and humid, with a high of 89°.  However, late in the day, about an hour after the Macy's fireworks exhibition, a shower moved through and dropped 0.04" of rain.  This was the hottest reading on the 4th of July in five years (when the high was 90°).

5 - It was a sultry day with a high of 90° and a heat index in the upper 90s as the dew point hovered mostly between 72°-74° throughout the day.  Even a shower shortly before sundown didn't bring any relief as the dew point remained in the 70s (0.10" fell). 

6 - Sunny, hot and quite humid.  Like yesterday, the dew point was between 72°-74° all day, making the high of 92° feel like it was in the upper 90s.  Today was the tenth day since 6/19 to have a high of 89° or hotter (eight were 90+).  And this was the fourth year of the past five to have a reading in the 90s on this date (2022 was the exception).

8 - With a high of 95°, this was the tenth high temperature in the 90s so far this summer (all occurring since 6/20), joining eighteen other summers with ten or more by 7/8 (since 1869).   Two other summers which had their 10th high of 90+ on this date, 1993 and 1944, ended up with 39 and 37 readings of 90+ in total, respectively (1993's total is the most on record, tied with 1991). 

FYI, the summer of 1925 had ten 90+ highs the earliest, by 6/15 (with only seven more thereafter).  And the most by 7/8 is 16, in 1966 and 1991 (finishing with 35 and 39, respectively).

10 - Today had the 11th reading in the 90s this year, the earliest date for this number of hot days since 2012 (when the 11th day in the 90s occurred on 7/8).  The days high of 91,° combined with a dew point of 74° at around noon, produced a "feels like" temperature of 101°.  

13 - Heavy rain this morning moved in around daybreak, amounting to 2.06".  Much of it (1.89") fell between 5:30-8:30.  Today's rain was comparable to what fell in the previous six weeks (June's rainfall was 1.71").

15 - Hot and humid, made even more uncomfortable by a sweltering dew point of 75° during the early afternoon.  Combined with a high of 91°, the heat index reached 102°, which was the hottest feels like temperature so far this summer. This was the year’s 13th day with a high in the 90s, which was one more than all of last year. The last time the 13th reading in the 90s occurred by 7/15 was in 2010.

17 - A high of 90° extended the current heat wave to four days, making it the summer's third heat wave of this length.  Today was the 15th day with a high in the 90s in the past four weeks (since 6/20).  Then tonight a deluge after 9:30 soaked the City with 1.46" of rain, most of it pouring down in the initial hour.  This was four days after 2.06" fell at daybreak.  

 

AUGUST

2 - Today's high of 92° was three degrees lower than yesterday's, but today's heat index of 101° was three degrees hotter because the afternoon's dew point was 73° while it was in the mid-60s yesterday afternoon.  A strong thunderstorm at around 7 PM dumped 0.52" of rain in about an hour (as the first drops began falling the dew point rose to 75°).  By coincidence, on this date last year, 0.51" of rain poured down during a thunderstorm at 10 PM.

6 - In the midst of the evening's rush hour, heavy rain moved in and produced a little more than two inches of rain by midnight.  These bands of rain started an hour or so earlier in the northern suburbs, many of which received twice as much rain as Central Park. This was the third time that more than an inch of rain fell on 8/6 when it fell on a Tuesday (the other years were in 1878 and 1901). 

Before the rain, the day's high reached 90°, making this the 20th time this year with a high of 90+, joining fifteen other years with this many (or more) hot days by 8/6.  The previous time there were 20 or more hot days by this date was in 2010.  

7 - The day following Central Park's 20th day of the year with a high of 90° or hotter, afternoon temperatures today were stuck in the mid-60s.  The reading of 64° at mid-day was the coolest since the temperature was 64° on 7/1.  This cool-down ended a streak of 38 days with high temperatures of 80° or warmer that began on 6/30 - the sixth longest such streak on record.  (It also ended a 50-day stretch in which 49 of the days had highs of 80° or warmer.)  The day's high of 72° (twelve degrees below average) occurred an hour or so before sunrise and was the coolest high temperature since 5/30.

Finally, the 0.13" of light rain and drizzle that fell this morning and afternoon made this the seventh year of the past eight in which measurable rain fell on 8/7.

9 - Flooding rains from tropical storm Debby, which earlier this week had been forecast to soak the metro area, shifted to the west over Pennsylvania and upstate New York.  Although there was very little rain to speak of (0.11"), skies were overcast, it was breezy (gusts of 25-32 mph in Central Park) and the air was thick with humidity as dew points were in the 73% to 75% range.

Today was the seventh day of the past eight to have measurable rainfall, which amounted to 4.10".  This was the most rain to fall in the first nine days of August in 21 years and was nearly the same amount that fell in the month of July (4.2o").

18 - After showers between 2-9 AM brought 0.54" of rain, three times as much poured down from evening thunderstorms between 7:00-9:30 PM (1.75").  More than half of this amount (1.12") fell between 7:15-7:45 PM; during this half hour, visibility in Central Park was reduced to one-quarter of a mile.  NYC, however, escaped the heaviest rainfall as amounts between four and ten inches were reported on Long Island and southwestern Connecticut (at the other end of the scale, Kennedy Airport picked up less than inch of rain). 

Today's rainfall of 2.29" made this the second rainiest day of the year, behind 3/23, which had 3.66".  It was also the second daily rainfall of two inches or more in the past two weeks (2.08" fell on 8/6).

21 - For the first time since 2013, an August low temperature in Central Park was in the 50s.  At 57°, this was the coolest August reading since lows of 56° in 2007 (on 8/21 and 8/22).

 

SEPTEMBER

7 - A cold front that would bring a taste of autumn produced a period of heavy showers during mid-afternoon.  The 0.24" of rain measured in Central Park would be the only measurable rainfall reported in the first three weeks of September.

11 - Today's conditions were nearly identical to those on 9/11 in 2001, as skies were bright blue, the air was very dry (i.e., the humidity dipped to 18% early in the afternoon), and the high of 79° was close to that of 9/11 (81°).  In the years since 2000, only 9/11 in 2001 had lower humidity (15% in late afternoon).  Today was the tenth day in a row in which the high failed to reach 80° or above.   

23 - A 15-day streak with no rain ended today when light showers in the late afternoon and later tonight produced 0.04" of rain in Central Park.  This was the longest streak with no measurable rain in three-and-a-half years (since a streak of 16 days in March 2021).  Under overcast skies, the high of 67° was the coolest since mid-May.

29 - A steady light rain fell from daybreak thru late afternoon.  Amounting to 0.78” in Central Park, this was nearly equal to what fell in the first 28 days of the month (0.80”).  This was the third day in a row with wraparound showers from the remnants of Hurricane Helene, whose center of circulation never got closer than 800 miles from NYC.  The two preceding days had rainfall of 0.18" (Friday) and 0.26" (Saturday). 

And for the second day in a row the temperature was stuck in the 60s all day.