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.
OCTOBER
15 - For the first time on record, Central Park had no measurable rain during the first 15 days of October. Previously, the deepest into October with no measurable rain was 14 days in 1914 and 1974. This was also the sixteenth day in a row with no measurable rain (going back to 9/30), besting a 15-day streak in September (which was the longest one in 3-1/2 years).
Also, today's high of 57° (eight degrees below average) was the first high cooler than 60° since May 12.